A Melbourne jury has found three men guilty of terrorism charges over the torching of a Shia mosque in the Melbourne suburb of Fawkner in December 2016. The Supreme Court found Ahmed Mohamed, 26, Abdullah Chaarani, 28, and Hatim Moukhaiber, 30, guilty of the burning down of the Imam Ali Islamic Centre in December 2016, causing $1.5 million in damage.
After two days of deliberating, the jury of six men and six women also found Mohamed and Chaarani guilty of an earlier failed attempt to torch the centre on November 25, 2016.
The court heard the Sunni men had caused property damage to advance an ideological cause to intimidate a section of the public, which met the definition of terrorism, according to prosecutors.
There were emotional scenes after the verdict was read, as family members of the three accused reacted.
An older woman cried at the jury, before being told to leave the court.
“What are you doing? You dogs,” she shouted.
Moukhaiber also yelled across the court to police, calling them “oppressors” and “dogs”.
Justice Andrew Tinney will sentence Mohamed, Chaarani and Moukhaiber at a later date.
