Latest news with #Moule
The Guardian
20-02-2025
- The Guardian
Two men charged in connection with alleged antisemitic attack on former Sydney home of Jewish leader Alex Ryvchin
Two men charged with allegedly starting a fire at a Sydney synagogue have been charged in connection with a separate alleged antisemitic attack at the former home of prominent Jewish leader Alex Ryvchin. A Dover Heights home once owned by Ryvchin – the co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry – was splashed with red paint in mid-January at about 4am, police allege. Four cars were also damaged, with two set alight. One of the cars set on fire was graffitied with the words 'Fuck Jews'. Adam Edward Moule, 33, and Leon Sofilas, 37, were arrested at a correctional facility on Wednesday and charged with being accessories before the fact to damaging property by means of fire or explosion. The pair were in custody on remand after being charged in connection with an earlier incident at a synagogue in Newtown a week before the Dover Heights attack. Moule and Sofilas allegedly spray-painted 10 swastikas on the synagogue on 11 January. It is also alleged by police that they put an 'unknown liquid' on 'sticks and branches bundled together' and lit a fire that quickly burnt out. New South Wales police said on Thursday the pair had additionally been charged in connection with another alleged incident at Queens Park on 11 January when five vehicles and two houses were vandalised with 'offensive graffiti'. Both men were charged with being accessories before the fact to damaging property in company and participating in a criminal group contributing to criminal activity. Moule and Marshall were charged under Strike Force Pearl – a police operation set up to investigate acts of hate across Sydney. It is examining a spate of arson attacks and antisemitic and anti-Israel graffiti on streets and synagogues. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Pearl detectives on Tuesday separately made their 13th arrest when charging 36-year-old Scott Marshall. Det Supt Darren Newman told reporters on Wednesday that NSW police would allege Marshall and his partner, Tammie Farrugia, were 'involved in preparing' a car and jerry cans ahead of an anti-Israel arson and graffiti attack in Woollahra in mid-December. Newman said a number of matters remained under investigation – including whether the incidents were linked to organised crime and whether some of the attacks were conducted by people paid to commit crimes. 'It would appear, from our investigations, there is certainly a level of planning,' he said on Wednesday.
The Guardian
06-02-2025
- The Guardian
Two men accused of attempting to set fire to Sydney synagogue denied bail
The two men accused of attempting to light a Newtown synagogue on fire have been refused bail. Adam Moule, 33, and Leon Sofilas, 37, who are co-accused, appeared via video in Downing Centre local court on Thursday when their individual solicitors made applications for them to be released on bail. The pair are alleged to have spray-painted 10 swastikas on a synagogue in Newtown on 11 January. They also allegedly sprayed an 'unknown liquid' on 'sticks and branches bundled together' and lit a fire that quickly burnt out, the court heard. Both have been charged with destroying property using fire. Magistrate Greg Grogin denied the pair's application for bail, saying there was an unacceptable risk they would commit a further offence. 'It is said that this offence was a hate-motivated crime,' the magistrate said. The attack was 'random' in nature but 'planned insofar as there was liquid there and taken to the location', Grogin told the court. 'The random nature of this offence is of great concern to the court.' Sofilas's lawyer, Steve Mav, said his client denied the allegations. He had since been moved to protective custody. 'If my client remains in custody we're talking about him potentially being there for one to two years in a very unsafe environment,' Mav told the court. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Mav told the court Sofilas was Tasered 11 times during his arrest. The magistrate noted that was not mentioned by police in their outline of the facts. Earlier in the proceedings, the court also heard an application for Sofilas's co-accused, Moule. Jenni Bridges, a lawyer from the Aboriginal Legal Service who was acting on behalf of Moule, argued he should be released on bail due to his mental health challenges. 'He is an Indigenous man with significant mental health issues,' she told the court. The court heard that Moule had not been given the medication he takes to treat his anxiety, depression and PTSD since being in custody. The magistrate ruled he should be given his medication. 'He has not been able to speak to his mother or his family,' his lawyer said, adding his mother found out he was in custody via the media. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'He was in custody at the time [his father died] and could not attend the funeral or participate in sorry business.' The court also heard that Moule lives in social housing and, under the rules, if he is absent from that home for more than six months, he will lose it. 'If he is not granted bail he will lose housing and once again become homeless,' she said. The police prosecutor, Peter Boctor, opposed bail, arguing there was an unacceptable risk to the community and the objective seriousness of the crime. In responding to Sofilas's application, Boctor said there was a risk he would interfere with witnesses and fail to appear at future court dates. Moule and Sofilas were due in court again on 3 April.
