Zionist sentenced for intimidation after placing bomb on Palestine activist鈥檚 ute

April 8, 2024
Issue 
The bomb, with a threatening message, on Palestine supporter Theo's car. Photo: Supplied

[Updated on May 8.]聽

New South Wales聽Police took eight weeks to locate a Zionist who planted a bomb on a Palestine supporter鈥檚 utility vehicle last year.

David Wise聽was eventually聽arrested, held on聽remand since early March, and was sentenced for stalking and intimidation on May 7. He was given a and a two-year community corrections order.

Theo, the target of the attack, told聽麻豆传媒 that he placed Palestinian flags on his ute and front yard after Israel launched its attack on Gaza.

Later, encouraged by the support he received, he added a board with the numbers of Palestinians being murdered by Israel.

Theo said Wise contacted him in early December, saying he felt 鈥減ersonally attacked鈥 by the Palestinian flag. 鈥淗e told me he lived around the corner and had been thinking of doing something bad.鈥

Theo and his partner tried to de-escalate the situation and find 鈥渃ommon ground鈥. They added a quote from Martin Luther King Jr and the Israeli hostages to the number tally board. 鈥淲e ended with a hug,鈥 he said.

Using figures from聽Haaretz, Theo also added the number of Palestinian hostages and the number of people being killed.

鈥淚 became a supporter of Palestine when I was 12, after reading a graphic novel about Gaza,鈥 Theo said. 鈥淚 placed some flags in my home to normalise support for Palestine.

鈥淥n January 5, I walked out to my ute with what looked like a bomb with a note [pinned to it saying]: 鈥楨nough! Take flag down! One chance!!!鈥欌

Theo called the police and the bomb squad, who described the jerry can, which contained petrol, a rag and a lighter, as an 鈥渋nactive improvised explosive device鈥, but with 鈥渆xplosive potential鈥.

Theo said the ABC 鈥渃alled it 鈥榝ake鈥 and Premier Chris Minns parroted that鈥.

Despite informing the police about Wise鈥檚 threat, 鈥渁 junior constable 鈥 took聽eight聽weeks to find him鈥, Theo said.

鈥淲ise called me on a pay phone in mid-February, threatening me. I tracked down the pay phone and let the police know the location.鈥

Theo complained to his Labor MP about the slow progress. 鈥淔inally, in early March, police located Wise, who admitted to planting the explosive and harassment.鈥

Wise was placed on remand on March 7. He was charged with several offences, including leaving an article with intent to聽cause聽alarm (which carries a maximum sentence of five years), stalking and harassment, and unlawfully entering enclosed land.

Wise was given the lesser charge of stalking. Theo said he should have been charged under the聽Weapons Prohibition Act 1998聽and given a terrorism charge 鈥 20 years in jail 鈥 because it would send a message to those thinking of trying something similar.

鈥淚f a Palestinian, not a white Israeli, did this, they鈥檇 be in jail quick smart and for decades,鈥 Theo said.

Yet, police are 鈥渃harging peaceful protesters at Palestine rallies with assault and malicious damage for conducting a die-in. The maximum penalty is 10 years. Yet they don鈥檛 want to hold Wise to account in the same way.鈥

Theo said police pressed him not to send a complaint to the Department of Public Prosecution (DPP). When he did visit the DPP, accompanied by his lawyer, the police followed him and the DPP refused to meet.

鈥淚 wanted the DPP to consider weapons and terrorism charges [for Wise] and take it to the federal courts, where terrorism charges can be laid.

Police went to a lot of effort to charge and jail a 13-year-old autistic boy who had a fixation on the Islamic State, Theo said, but 鈥渃ouldn鈥檛 find Wise for two months, nor charge him with a serious crime鈥.

on May 7 that he is being harassed by another man, who he thinks has been emboldened by the police protection of Wise. The man in question has been photographed by far-right 鈥渋nfluencer鈥 Freya Leach at a Zionist-organised 鈥渂lood march鈥.

He has made his support for the genocide of Palestinians clear, Theo said, and his wish that Israel be ethnically cleansed of Arabs.

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