19yo man the first Australian jailed for sharing beheading videos

A 19-year-old man will spend three years behind bars after becoming the first Australian convicted of sharing violent Islamic State content online.

A 19-year-old man has become the first Australian convicted of sharing violent Islamic State content on social media.

The man admitted in the Perth District Court he had shared videos of beheadings produced by the terrorist organisation, as well as audio recordings encouraging extreme violence and contempt for people based on their religious beliefs or ethnicity.

The teenager was arrested in June last year following an investigation about violent extremist material being shared online and encrypted messaging platforms by the Western Australian Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT)

Australian Federal Police arrested the 19-year-old Perth man last year. Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

He was charged with one count of transmitting violent extremist material online and one count of using a carriage service to cause an offence and taken into custody.

Judge Belinda Lonsdale said during sentencing that the teen told officers he thought it was satire.

“I accept that it is unlikely you do not have any appreciation of what satire is, however on any reasonable view of what you said it could not be regarded as humorous at any level and certainly not satire,” Judge Lonsdale said.

“Your language conveyed ideas of killing and cruelty, which defies the imagination of civilised minds.”

Judge Lonsdale said his offending was a serious example of its kind and he had used the most hateful, racist, misogynistic and violent language directed towards groups of people he regarded as his enemy.

He was described as “grossly immature” in a medical report submitted to the court.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Stephen Nutt said investigators had been concerned about the material the man was spreading online. NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Australian Federal Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Nutt said in a statement investigators had been concerned about the material the man was spreading online and acted quickly to protect the community.

“Islamic State shares violent extremist material online to try to radicalise young people around the world and encourage them to carry out acts of violence on its behalf,” he said.

“It is an offence to access, or share violent extremist material and authorities will act when these crimes are identified.

“We want to remind the public – if you see something concerning online, please report it. Your information is often invaluable in assisting law enforcement to protect the community.

“One of the goals of the JCTT is to keep the community safe by preventing anyone from advocating for attacks or harassment of other people.”

The 19-year-old will be eligible for parole in May next year.

Originally published as 19yo man the first Australian jailed for sharing beheading videos