Mosman bomb hoax

Last updated

Mosman bomb hoax
Date3 August 2011 (2011-08-03)
Location Mosman, New South Wales, Australia
Coordinates 33°50′30″S151°14′51″E / 33.8417°S 151.2474°E / -33.8417; 151.2474 Coordinates: 33°50′30″S151°14′51″E / 33.8417°S 151.2474°E / -33.8417; 151.2474
CauseSuspected collar bomb
SuspectsPaul Douglas Peters
ChargesAggravated break and enter, detaining for advantage
VerdictGuilty
Convictions13.5 years (minimum 10 years)

The Mosman bomb hoax took place in the Lower North Shore Sydney suburb of Mosman, New South Wales, Australia on 3 August 2011. An apparent collar bomb was placed around the neck of 18-year-old student Madeleine Pulver [1] by a balaclava-clad home intruder. [2] A note attached to the device stated that any attempt to alert law enforcement would "trigger an immediate BRIAN DOUGLAS WELLS event". [3] Brian Wells was a pizza delivery driver who was killed in a bank robbery involving a collar bomb in 2003. [3]

Contents

Investigation

The dummy device was of such sophistication that it took the Police Rescue & Bomb Disposal Unit almost ten hours to ascertain that it was not an explosive device, and then to dismantle and remove it, in part with the telephoned assistance of a British Army major who was in Australia for training. [4] The incident, which attracted media attention worldwide, [1] was treated as an extortion investigation. [5] [6]

Arrest and sentencing

Paul Douglas Peters, a man with no direct links to the victim or her family, was arrested in Kentucky, United States after leaving Australia a few days after the incident. Police were unsure of motive, but were not looking for other suspects. [7] Peters was extradited to Australia on 24 September 2011 and was held without bail by New South Wales Police. [8] On 8 March 2012 he pleaded guilty in Sydney's Central Local Court to aggravated break and enter and detaining for advantage. On 20 November 2012, Peters was sentenced to a prison term of 13 years and 6 months, with a non-parole period of 10 years. In sentencing the judge said although Peters had marital and mental health issues, he engaged in a "deliberate act of extortion" and was not in a psychotic state at the time of the offence. [9] Peters appealed his sentence to the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal. On 20 December 2013, the Court unanimously dismissed the appeal. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Bali bombings</span> Terrorist attack in Indonesia

The 2002 Bali bombings occurred on 12 October 2002 in the tourist district of Kuta on the Indonesian island of Bali. The attack killed 202 people. A further 209 people were injured.

Adam Stuart Busby is a convicted terrorist, malicious hoaxer, Scottish Nationalist and claims to be the founder of the Scottish National Liberation Army. In 1983 after a hoax letter-bombing campaign against high-profile public figures he organised attacks from Dublin involving anthrax hoaxes, bomb threats, and genuine parcel bombs. In 1997 he was jailed in Ireland for two hoax phone threats against Scottish media organisations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death of Brian Wells</span> American death by explosive collar

The death of Brian Wells took place on August 28, 2003, after Wells, a pizza delivery man, robbed a PNC Bank near his hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. Upon being apprehended by police, Wells was murdered when an explosive collar locked to his neck detonated. The plot subsequently uncovered has been described as "one of the most complicated and bizarre crimes" in the history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The Bali Nine were a group of nine Australians convicted for attempting to smuggle 8.3 kg (18 lb) of heroin out of Indonesia in April 2005. The heroin was valued at around A$4 million and was bound for Australia. Ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were sentenced to death and executed on 29 April 2015. Six other members, Si Yi Chen, Michael Czugaj, Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, Matthew Norman, Scott Rush and Martin Stephens, were sentenced to life imprisonment and another, Renae Lawrence, to a 20-year sentence but was released after the sentence was commuted in November 2018. The Indonesian authorities reported on 5 June 2018 that Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen had died of stomach cancer.

Robert Lindsay Hughes also billed variously as Bob Hughes and Robert Hughs, is an Australian-born British former actor, voice actor, and musician, whose most significant roles include ABBA: The Movie and the television sitcom Hey Dad..!. In May 2014, he was convicted of sexual offences against children and sentenced to ten years, nine months' imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of six years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dragan Vasiljković</span>

Dragan Vasiljković, nicknamed Captain Dragan is a convicted war criminal and the former commander of a Serb paramilitary unit called the Knindže or during the Yugoslav Wars. In 2005, prosecutors in Croatia accused him of committing war crimes during the wars. A warrant for his arrest was subsequently issued by Interpol.

The Whiskey Au Go Go fire was a fire that occurred at 2.08 am on Thursday 8 March 1973, in the Whiskey Au Go Go nightclub in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Australia that killed 15 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Mokbel</span> Australian criminal (born 1965)

Antonios Sajih Mokbel is an Australian criminal who has been convicted of a number of offences, most prominently commercial drug trafficking. He has spent most of his life in Melbourne, Australia. Operation Purana alleged that he is the mastermind behind the Melbourne amphetamine trade. He has been linked to Carl Williams, and charged but not convicted of two murders in the Melbourne gangland war. He disappeared from Melbourne while on trial in March 2006, and was arrested by Greek police in Athens on 5 June 2007. Since being brought back to Australia he has remained incarcerated.

John Howard Amundsen was the first Queenslander to be charged under national anti-terrorist laws in Australia. These charges were later dropped.

Terrorism in Australia deals with terrorist acts in Australia as well as steps taken by the Australian government to counter the threat of terrorism. In 2004 the Australian government has identified transnational terrorism as also a threat to Australia and to Australian citizens overseas. Australia has experienced acts of modern terrorism since the 1960s, while the federal parliament, since the 1970s, has enacted legislation seeking to target terrorism.

Margaret Mary Cunneen is an Australian barrister, prosecutor and commissioner of a government inquiry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abergil crime family</span> Israeli organized crime group

The Abergil crime family is a crime organization based in Israel, and located around the world, founded by Ya'akov Abergil. The group was headed by Ya'akov Abergil until his death in 2002, and is now run under the auspices of Itzhak (Itzik) Abergil, and his brothers Meir Abergil and Avraham (Ibi) Abergil. Its illicit activities include drug trafficking, both in Israel and the US, murder, extortion, embezzlement, money laundering, the control of illegal casinos and other crimes. Considered one of the six major organized-crime cells in Israel, and one of the world's top 40 biggest drug importers to the United States, the Abergils have been arrested and detained multiple times worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Assange</span> Australian publisher and activist (born 1971)

Julian Paul Assange is an Australian editor, publisher, and cypherpunk activist. He was convicted in Australia for hacking in 1996. He founded WikiLeaks in 2006; the organisation came to international attention in 2010 when it published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. After the 2010 leaks, the United States government launched a criminal investigation into WikiLeaks.

The Tesco bomb campaign was an attempted extortion against British supermarket chain Tesco which started in Bournemouth, England, in August 2000 and led to one of the largest and most secretive operations ever undertaken by Dorset Police. During the campaign, a blackmailer identified by the pseudonym "Sally" sent letters to Tesco stores threatening to harm customers if his demands—for Clubcards, modified so that the holder could withdraw cash from ATMs—were not met.

William Pulver is a former Australian sporting administrator. He was the CEO of the Australian Rugby Union after succeeding John O'Neill in early 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Australian school bomb threats</span>

A large number of Australian schools received hoax bomb threats in late January and early February 2016. Other similar phone threats, including school shootings and chemical attacks, were also received by a number of schools across Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. A total of 591 threatening calls were received by Australian schools.

Michael Shrimpton is an English former barrister and judge who is known for his conspiracy theories and hoaxes. He was convicted in 2014 for falsely reporting that Germany was planning a nuclear attack on the 2012 Summer Olympics.

In early 2017, a wave of more than 2,000 bomb threats were made against Jewish Community Centers in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, and Denmark. Two arrests and two convictions were made in connection with the threats: Michael Ron David Kadar, a dual American-Israeli citizen, who received a ten year sentence, along with Juan M. Thompson, a former journalist, who received a five year sentence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1971 Qantas bomb hoax</span> Extortion and robbery on a Qantas plane

The 1971 Qantas bomb hoax was an extortion and robbery committed by Peter Macari and Raymond Poynting on 26 May 1971, where Macari, under the alias of "Mr. Brown", extorted $500,000 from Qantas by informing officials that he had hidden a bomb onboard Qantas Flight 755 from Sydney to Hong Kong, and that the device would explode if the plane were to descend below 20,000 feet. In exchange for the safety of the 128 passengers and crew on board Flight 755, Macari demanded a ransom of $500,000. While authorities negotiated with Macari, Flight 755 was forced to circle Sydney; however after over six hours in the air and with fuel supplies dwindling, Qantas was forced to concede. At around 5:45 p.m., in Chifley Square, just outside Qantas company headquarters, Captain RJ Ritchie, a Qantas general manager, handed Macari the ransom money through the window of a Volkswagen Kombi. Sometime after 6:00 pm, Qantas received a final call from Macari stating that there was no bomb onboard Flight 755. The plane was able to land safely at Sydney Airport around 6:45 p.m.

The Bandidos Motorcycle Club is classified as a motorcycle gang by law enforcement and intelligence agencies in numerous countries. While the club has denied being a criminal organization, Bandidos members have been convicted of partaking in criminal enterprises including theft, extortion, prostitution, drug trafficking and murder in various host nations.

References

  1. 1 2 "Madeleine Pulver's Mosman bomb nightmare a hoax: police". The Sydney Morning Herald. 4 August 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  2. Howden, Saffron; Ralston, Nick; Olding, Rachel (5 August 2011). "Novel signature adds to bomb hoax mystery". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  3. 1 2 Bouda, Simon (22 October 2019). "Collared!". Reader's Digest True Crime: Tales of Murder & Mayhem. New York, N.Y. p. 132. ISBN   978-1-62145-454-0. OCLC   1088906428.
  4. Carne, Lucy (5 August 2011). "British Army expert talked squad through the dangers". The Daily Telegraph. Australia. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  5. "Fake bomb was chained to Madeleine Pulver's neck". BBC.co.uk. 4 August 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  6. Morri, Mark (4 August 2011). "Police say bomb terror in Mosman involving teenager Madeleine Pulver was a 'very elaborate hoax'". The Daily Telegraph. Australia. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  7. "Australian police arrest man". mail.com. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  8. "Suspect in bomb scare extradited to Australia". CNN. 24 September 2011. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  9. Wells, Jamelle, staff (20 November 2012). "Extortionist jailed over Sydney collar-bomb hoax". ABC News. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  10. Bibby, Paul (20 December 2013). "Paul Peters loses appeal against 10-year sentence in Maddie Pulver hoax bomb case". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 7 January 2014.