Joseph Thomas
Encyclopedia
Joseph "Jihad Jack" Terrence Thoppil Thomas (born 1973) is an Australia
n citizen whose conviction for receiving funds from Al-Qaeda
was overturned on appeal. Thomas, commonly referred to in Australian media as "Jihad Jack", was acquitted of providing resources that would assist in a terrorist act before becoming the first Australian to be placed under a control order under the Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005
.
. He was sentenced on 31 March 2006 to five years prison with a non-parole period of two years. Thomas's lawyer, Rob Stary
, described the not guilty verdicts on the more serious charges as a "significant victory".
Attorney-General of Australia
Philip Ruddock
said after news of the conviction,
This was in relation to his travels to Pakistan
and Afghanistan
, after he married and converted to Islam
. Thomas left Australia for Pakistan on 23 March 2001, and returned home on 6 June 2003. Since his arrest, Thomas has been referred to in the media as "Jihad Jack". When he converted to Islam the self described Aussie battler
took on the name Jihad
, Arabic for struggle.
in the case of R v Thomas
, with the appeals judges ruling that the trial judge should have ruled the evidence inadmissible.
after written consent was provided by the Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock
. The control order places the following restrictions on Thomas:
Australian federal magistrate Graham Mowbray made the assessment that Thomas is capable of launching a terrorist attack and that his wife has links to the alleged spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakar Bashir
. Thomas and his wife have stated that his wife was a friend of a friend of the woman who became Bashir's wife. Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group
says the link is a case of mistaken identity based on surname. Since granting the control order Magistrate Mowbray has criticised the inclusion of Osama Bin Laden on the list of people with whom Thomas must not have contact. He has also criticised the timing of the order, which interrupted a holiday Thomas was having with his family.
Thomas unsuccessfully appealed
the making of the control order to the High Court of Australia
.
Four Corners television program. On 23 October 2008 Thomas was found not guilty of the terrorism charges but was found guilty of a passport offence, which carries a maximum penalty of two years' imprisonment. Thomas has already served nine months. Justice Elizabeth Curtain on 29 October 2008 ordered that Thomas be imprisoned for nine months but found he was free to go after taking into account time already served. "No other penalty is appropriate in the circumstances of this case other than a sentence of imprisonment," Justice Curtain said. She ordered that Thomas be released immediately on a Commonwealth recognisance order to be of good behaviour for the five days remaining of his sentence once the 265 days of pre-sentence detention had been taken into account. He was also required to pay a $1000 bond. Thomas was represented by former Victorian Deputy Premier Jim Kennan
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n citizen whose conviction for receiving funds from Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
was overturned on appeal. Thomas, commonly referred to in Australian media as "Jihad Jack", was acquitted of providing resources that would assist in a terrorist act before becoming the first Australian to be placed under a control order under the Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005
Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005
The Anti-Terrorism Act 2005 is legislation intended to hamper the activities of any potential terrorists in Australia. It was passed by the Commonwealth Parliament on 6 December 2005.- Chronology :...
.
Terror conviction
Joseph Terrence Thomas was the first Australian to be convicted under anti-terrorism laws introduced in Australia after the 11 September 2001 attacks in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He was sentenced on 31 March 2006 to five years prison with a non-parole period of two years. Thomas's lawyer, Rob Stary
Rob Stary
Robert Stary is an Australian criminal defence lawyer, best known for defending Jack Thomas, the first Australian to be convicted under anti-terrorism laws introduced in Australia after the 11 September 2001 terror attacks in the United States. Stary has been a vocal critic of the legislation and...
, described the not guilty verdicts on the more serious charges as a "significant victory".
Attorney-General of Australia
Attorney-General of Australia
The Attorney-General of Australia is the first law officer of the Crown, chief law officer of the Commonwealth of Australia and a minister of the Crown. The Attorney-General is usually a member of the Federal Cabinet, but there is no constitutional requirement that this be the case since the...
Philip Ruddock
Philip Ruddock
Philip Maxwell Ruddock is an Australian politician who is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the Division of Berowra, New South Wales, for the Liberal Party of Australia...
said after news of the conviction,
- "The convictions of Mr. Thomas for the terrorist offence and the offence related to passport manipulation demonstrate the seriousness with which these issues are dealt with by the law and highlights the consequences of becoming involved in these activities".
This was in relation to his travels to Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, after he married and converted to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Thomas left Australia for Pakistan on 23 March 2001, and returned home on 6 June 2003. Since his arrest, Thomas has been referred to in the media as "Jihad Jack". When he converted to Islam the self described Aussie battler
Aussie battler
The term Aussie Battler is an Australian colloquialism referring to "ordinary" or working class individuals who persevere through their commitments despite adversity. Typically, this adversity comprises the challenges of low pay, family commitments, environmental hardships and lack of personal...
took on the name Jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
, Arabic for struggle.
Conviction overturned
The trial was highly controversial, as the evidence used to prosecute Thomas consisted solely of an interview conducted in a Pakistani military prison. Despite claims that the evidence was obtained under duress and that Thomas had been tortured, the judge deemed the interview to be admissible. The conviction was overturned on appeal by the Victorian Court of AppealSupreme Court of Victoria
The Supreme Court of Victoria is the superior court for the State of Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1852, and is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited jurisdiction within the state...
in the case of R v Thomas
R v Thomas
R v Thomas was an Australian court case decided in the Victorian Court of Appeal on 18 August 2006. It concerned the conviction in February 2006 of Joseph Thomas on terrorism-related charges, specifically receiving funds from Al Qaeda...
, with the appeals judges ruling that the trial judge should have ruled the evidence inadmissible.
Control order
On 28 August 2006, following the quashing of the convictions, Thomas was the first person to be issued with a control order under the Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005
The Anti-Terrorism Act 2005 is legislation intended to hamper the activities of any potential terrorists in Australia. It was passed by the Commonwealth Parliament on 6 December 2005.- Chronology :...
after written consent was provided by the Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock
Philip Ruddock
Philip Maxwell Ruddock is an Australian politician who is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the Division of Berowra, New South Wales, for the Liberal Party of Australia...
. The control order places the following restrictions on Thomas:
- He must abide by a curfewCurfewA curfew is an order specifying a time after which certain regulations apply. Examples:# An order by a government for certain persons to return home daily before a certain time...
, confining him to his home from midnight until 5am each morning. - He is restricted in the phone services he is allowed to operate (one mobile phone, one land line) and must have these approved by the Australian Federal PoliceAustralian Federal PoliceThe Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...
. He is prohibited from using public pay phones. - He is required to seek written approval to make telephone calls.
- He is not to communicate with a list of persons identified as terrorists including Osama bin LadenOsama bin LadenOsama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
, Ayman al-ZawahiriAyman al-ZawahiriAyman Mohammed Rabie al-Zawahiri is an Egyptian physician, Islamic theologian and current leader of al-Qaeda. He was previously the second and last "emir" of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, having succeeded Abbud al-Zumar in the latter role when Egyptian authorities sentenced al-Zumar to life...
and Abu Musab al-ZarqawiAbu Musab al-ZarqawiAbu Musab al-Zarqawi ; October 30, 1966 – June 7, 2006), born Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-Khalayleh was a Jordanian militant Islamist who ran a paramilitary training camp in Afghanistan... - He must agree to be fingerprinted.
- He must not leave Australia.
Australian federal magistrate Graham Mowbray made the assessment that Thomas is capable of launching a terrorist attack and that his wife has links to the alleged spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakar Bashir
Abu Bakar Bashir
Abu Bakar Bashir Abu Bakar Bashir Abu Bakar Bashir (also Abubakar Ba'asyir, Abdus Somad, and Ustad Abu ("Teacher Abu"), born 17 August 1938, is an Indonesian Muslim cleric and leader of the Indonesian Mujahedeen Council (MMI)....
. Thomas and his wife have stated that his wife was a friend of a friend of the woman who became Bashir's wife. Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group
International Crisis Group
The International Crisis Group is an international, non-profit, non-governmental organization whose mission is to prevent and resolve deadly conflicts around the world through field-based analyses and high-level advocacy.-History:...
says the link is a case of mistaken identity based on surname. Since granting the control order Magistrate Mowbray has criticised the inclusion of Osama Bin Laden on the list of people with whom Thomas must not have contact. He has also criticised the timing of the order, which interrupted a holiday Thomas was having with his family.
Thomas unsuccessfully appealed
Thomas v Mowbray
Thomas v Mowbray [2007] HCA 33, was a decision handed down in the High Court of Australia on 2 August 2007 concerning the validity of Subdivision B of Division 104 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code, which allows the for imposition of "interim control orders"...
the making of the control order to the High Court of Australia
High Court of Australia
The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. It has both original and appellate jurisdiction, has the power of judicial review over laws passed by the Parliament of Australia and the parliaments of the States, and...
.
Retrial
On 20 December 2006 Thomas was ordered to face a retrial, based on an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation'sAustralian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
Four Corners television program. On 23 October 2008 Thomas was found not guilty of the terrorism charges but was found guilty of a passport offence, which carries a maximum penalty of two years' imprisonment. Thomas has already served nine months. Justice Elizabeth Curtain on 29 October 2008 ordered that Thomas be imprisoned for nine months but found he was free to go after taking into account time already served. "No other penalty is appropriate in the circumstances of this case other than a sentence of imprisonment," Justice Curtain said. She ordered that Thomas be released immediately on a Commonwealth recognisance order to be of good behaviour for the five days remaining of his sentence once the 265 days of pre-sentence detention had been taken into account. He was also required to pay a $1000 bond. Thomas was represented by former Victorian Deputy Premier Jim Kennan
Jim Kennan
James Harley "Jim" Kennan SC was an Australian politician and later Adjunct Professor of Law at Deakin University.He earned a Master of Laws from the University of Melbourne...
.
External links
- Justice for Jack Campaign website
- National Security website from the Australian Attorney-General's Department