Two suspects, 22-year-old Neils Baholet and 25-year-old Merouan Meye, were arrested at the scene.
By Shula Rosen
Two men arrested for pointing an imitation pistol toward a synagogue in Sydney’s eastern suburbs have been granted bail after appearing in court, with both ordered to stay out of Double Bay while the case proceeds, Australian media reported.
Police said the incident occurred shortly after 12:20 p.m. Saturday when officers received reports that people inside a vehicle had pointed what appeared to be a firearm at Chabad Double Bay.
Officers later stopped a Toyota SUV at the intersection of Bayswater and Darlinghurst roads in Kings Cross.
A search of the vehicle led to the discovery of an imitation pistol, which police seized for forensic examination.
Two suspects, 22-year-old Neils Baholet and 25-year-old Merouan Meye, were arrested at the scene.
They were initially taken to Kings Cross Police Station before being transferred to Surry Hills Police Station.
Baholet was charged with using an offensive weapon with intent to commit an indictable offense, possessing an unauthorized pistol and stalking offenses. He is scheduled to return to court on July 22.
Meye was charged with possessing an unauthorized pistol and is due to appear in court again on July 13.
Both men appeared before a local court on Sunday, where they were granted bail subject to strict conditions, including a prohibition on entering Double Bay.
The incident drew condemnation from Peter Wertheim, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
“I was shocked” by the incident, Wertheim told ABC Australia, adding that he was not surprised because “we’ve seen so many incidents in recent times involving acts of threats of violence directed at the Jewish community, so it no longer comes as a surprise.”
He said the alleged target was “a group of Jewish Australians who were doing nothing more than attending a Sabbath service as they do every week.”
The arrests come as the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion examines the circumstances surrounding the Bondi terror attack and broader antisemitism in Australia.
Nearly seven months ago, 15 people were killed in what was described as the country’s worst terror attack when two men opened fire at a Chanukah by the Sea event at Bondi Beach.
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