Sydney man arrested in terror raids allegedly swore allegiance to the Islamic State

A Sydney man arrested over alleged terror offences allegedly swore allegiance to Islamic State.

The 21-year-old Riverwood man was arrested and his family home raided on Wednesday morning by the Australian Federal Police and NSW Police Joint Counter-Terrorism Team.

It’s alleged the man, an Australian citizen, created and posted extremist material on social media and attempted to influence teenagers as young as 17 to engage in politically motivated violence.

Police allege the man encouraged teenagers to pledge allegiance to ISIS, with most of his alleged activities occurring online.

He’s also accused of swearing allegiance to ISIS and downloading a document of weapons and tactics that it’s alleged could be used to facilitate a terror attack.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Ian McCartney said there was no imminent threat but police decided to act early.

McCartney said the arrest is not connected to last week’s London terror attack but was a factor taken into consideration prior to his arrest.

“This problem is not going away,” McCartney said at Wednesday’s media conference.

“This is not about religion. This is about criminality. This is about violent extremism.”

McCartney added the 21 year old has a connection to individuals previously arrested over terror charges.

In a separate press conference, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the arrest was a reminder the threat of terrorism had not gone away.

“People do want to do harm in a country like ours,” Dutton said.

The 21-year-old’s grandparent’s home was also searched during the raids.

He faces three terror-related charges, including preparing for a terror attack, and is due in court on Thursday.

Source: 7News