Western Australian Admits Threatening PM and Premier on Social Media
A 19-year-old Western Australian, Will James King, has admitted to threatening to kill the Prime Minister and the New South Wales Premier on social media. King stated in court that he did not intend to act on the threats. His legal counsel is seeking a spent conviction.
Incident Details
King sent a direct message to NSW Premier Chris Minns' Instagram account on January 14. The message, read in Mandurah Magistrates Court, included the statement:
"I'll assassinate you and Albo and the country will be a better place."
This message also contained an anti-Semitic remark. Detectives from WA's State Security Investigations team arrested King at his home the following day.
King informed police he "didn't mean for it to be a threat" and that his actions were a result of being "annoyed" by news, although the specific news content was not detailed in court.
Defence and Court Proceedings
Defence lawyer Tendayi Chivunga stated that King had no prior criminal record, was not racist, and expressed significant remorse. She attributed his actions to a difficult period in his life, including his parents' separation.
Chivunga also highlighted King's exposure to "a lot of political stuff online" and "volatility in the articles he'd been digesting." She noted that the national news agenda at the time included the aftermath of the Bondi Beach massacre.
King's defence argued that he did not comprehend the seriousness of his messages and made an "honest mistake," asking for a spent conviction.
The police prosecutor, however, described the offense as very serious, suggesting imprisonment as a starting point. Magistrate Clare Cullen questioned if King had been radicalized, to which the defence replied it "may have been momentary."
The magistrate has ordered a psychological report to assess any potential "ongoing risk to the Australian community."
King is scheduled to reappear in court on June 26.