Police investigate terror links after man allegedly throws homemade bomb into Invasion Day rally crowd

Anthony Albanese has reacted in anger over a homemade bomb which was allegedly thrown into a crowd of protesters in the heart of Perth’s CBD which is being investigated as a possible terror attack. The Prime Minister described Monday’s incident, in which a 31-year-old man has been charged, as “quite shocking” and said support would be made available to assist authorities with their investigation. “This person … has been charged as a result of the allegation that he threw an item, and my view is that as a result of that, they should throw the book at him,” he told reporters in Darwin. “He’s been charged with two serious offences and I look forward to him being prosecuted to the full force of the law.” The man, was arrested by police at the scene and is facing one count each of making or possessing an explosive under suspicious circumstances and one count of endangering the life, health and safety of others. WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch confirmed officers had been liaising with the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police as they work to determine what allegedly motivated the attack on Invasion Day protesters at Forrest Place. “To be an act of terrorism, it requires one of three things, either political motivation, a religious motivation, or some type of ideology and advancing that cause,” Mr Blanch said. “Until we understand the motivation through downloading devices, interviewing the male or finding other materials, we can’t make that determination.” Mr Blanch said witnesses had come forward to help officers identify the suspect, who was allegedly seen throwing the device from the second level of the building towards the gathering crowd. Investigators are still unsure why the device did not detonate. “At the very least it would have seriously injured people, if not killed. But as far as blast radius and all of those things, we will have that device tested in a more detailed sense, through chemical analysis and reconstruction,” he said. “We understand there was an attempt to light a fuse, and that attempt either failed or the fuse fell out, one of those two things has potentially happened.” Officer from the bomb response unit managed to inspect the alleged explosive which consisted of three liquids inside a glass container. It’s believed the alleged attacker was operating on his own, he was not known to police and hadn’t come to their attention before. “We don’t believe that there is ongoing threats in relation to this individual,” Mr Blanch said. “I think WA is a safe place, but yesterday tells us as a community that safety isn’t assured. Police are continuing to appeal for any witnesses to come forward.