Immigration detainee, 45, accused of making hundreds of threatening calls to police
The Moroccan national, 45, was arrested at the Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre on Thursday and charged with two offences of using carriage service to menace, harass or offend and using a carriage service to make threat to kill.
According to the Australian Federal Police, the man allegedly made 297 offensive phone calls to the AFP over 54 days in April through July.
This would be an average of 5.5 calls per day over the two-month period.
The 45-year-old will return to court in September. Picture: Australian Federal Police.
AFP Detective Acting Inspector Karen Addiscott said the man's alleged calls could have disrupted or delayed genuine calls from being answered
'These types of calls not only impose a frustrating waste of resources for the agency targeted, they can be distressing and concerning for the people who answer them, even if they are not the direct target of the threats,' she said.
The man appeared in the Perth Magistrates' Court on Friday where he was remanded in custody ahead of his next appearance on September 12.
Read related topics: Immigration
Liam Beatty
Journalist
Liam Beatty is a court reporter with NCA NewsWire. He has previously worked in newsrooms in Victoria and Western Australia.
Liam Beatty
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Daily Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Daily Telegraph
Kathleen Folbigg to get payout after wrongly convicted of killing children
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News. NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley has decided to make an ex-gratia payment of $2 million to Kathleen Folbigg who was locked up for 20 years after being wrongly convicted of killing her children. The decision follows 'thorough and extensive consideration of the materials and issues raised in Ms Folbigg's application and provided by her legal representatives', a spokeswoman for Mr Daley said. 'The decision has been communicated to Ms Folbigg via her legal representatives,' the statement continued. 'At Ms Folbigg's request, the Attorney-General and Government have agreed to not publicly discuss the details of the decision. 'The Government will not make further comment on this matter.' Ms Folbigg was 35 years old when she was locked up in 2003, wrongly convicted of killing her four babies. Get all the latest Australian news as it happens — download the app direct to your phone. Kathleen Folbigg will receive $2 million from the NSW government after she spent 20 years in jail, wrongly convicted of killing her children. Picture: Supplied via NCA NewsWire The children — Caleb, Patrick, Sarah and Laura — died between 1989 and 1999 at ages ranging from 19 days to 18 months. She was released from prison in June last year after receiving a pardon following an independent inquiry, which heard new scientific evidence that indicated her children may have died from natural causes or a genetic mutation. Ms Folbigg's solicitor, Rhanee Rego, has since issued a statement describing the $2 million payment as 'profoundly unfair and unjust'. Experts had predicted a payment to Ms Folbigg upwards of $10 million. 'The sum offered is a moral affront – woefully inadequate and ethically indefensible,' Ms Rego said. 'The system has failed Kathleen Folbigg once again. Kathleen lost her four children; she lost 20 of the best years of her life; and she continues to feel the lasting effects of this ongoing trauma. 'The payment does not reflect the extent of the pain and suffering Kathleen has endured. This should be about the system recognising the significance of what it did to her.' Ms Folbigg was acquitted in 2023 after spending 20 years in prison. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles Ms Rego said an inquiry was urgently needed to understand how the government decided on this figure. 'When Lindy Chamberlain was exonerated in 1994, she received $1.7 million for three years in prison. Kathleen Folbigg spent two decades in prison, yet for her wrongful imprisonment she has been offered $2 million,' she said. 'Kathleen Folbigg's fight should be over. After being failed at her conviction and abused in prison, she is now being treated with contempt by the very system that should be making amends.' Ms Folbigg and her daughter, Sarah. Patrick Folbigg died aged eight months in 1991. Caleb Folbigg was just 19 days old when he died. Greens MP and Justice Spokesperson Sue Higginson said the offer was 'shocking and insulting'. 'Two million dollars barely covers what Kathleen could have earned on a full-time salary over 20 years,' she said. 'Kathleen has not only lost 20 years of wages, she has lost her four children, her home and her employability. She has racked up legal costs fighting her wrongful conviction, she has lost her superannuation, and she has been the victim of one of the worst injustices in this state's history — wrongful imprisonment.' Kathleen Folbigg was found guilty of murdering her children in 2003. She was acquitted in 2023. Baby Laura Folbigg died in 1999. Ms Folbigg's solicitor, Rhanee Rego, described the government's $2 million payment as 'profoundly unfair and unjust'. Ms Higginson said ex-gratia payments were payments of grace and good will, 'but what the Minns Labor Government have done today is offered a disgraceful payment in bad faith, it is 'Go Away' money'. 'It's unfair and speaks of misogyny and failure to take responsibility for the state's infliction of a grave injustice,' she said. In recent times Ms Folbigg has described how while she might not be locked in a cell any more, she still carried the shackles of 20 years of incarceration. 'I'm always watching who's coming through the door, who's behind me. I won't say fear, it's not a fear, just a bit of trepidation,' she said during an exclusive interview in Newcastle, the place she calls home. 'And I wait for someone else to open doors. When you're inside, you don't open doors or you cop it from the guards. 'I hadn't opened a door for 20 years, so yeah, I even find myself hesitating at my own doors at home.' 'Then there is the anxiety that comes with meeting new people.'

Sky News AU
3 hours ago
- Sky News AU
‘A disgraceful act': Beijing denies espionage in Australia
Former federal police detective superintendent David Craig warns of serious foreign interference as Beijing denies any role in espionage following explosive allegations of Chinese spying on Australian soil. 'The AFP… have a criminal case against someone who is spying on a foreign national on behalf of the Chinese government, spying within the Australian borders,' Mr Craig said. 'They don't charge people without any proof… and the alleged actions of this woman are very serious indeed. 'This is a disgraceful act.'


SBS Australia
4 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Court hears covert recording of TV star Matt Wright allegedly asking friend to destroy evidence
Court hears covert recording of TV star Matt Wright allegedly asking friend to destroy evidence Published 7 August 2025, 9:04 am The criminal trial of celebrity crocodile wrangler Matthew Wright has heard the TV star allegedly instructed a friend to destroy maintenance records of a helicopter, which was involved in a fatal crash three years ago. Wright's defence counsel today saying secret audio recordings of Mr Wight are 'extremely poor' while doubting the credibility of key witnesses. Matt Wright has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice.