Teen found not guilty of plotting terror attack on Peter Dutton after court hears of ‘edgy joke’

A Queensland teenager has been found not guilty of carrying out acts in preparation for a terrorist attack, after being accused of identifying Peter Dutton as an alleged target. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian View image in fullscreen A Queensland teenager has been found not guilty of carrying out acts in preparation for a terrorist attack, after being accused of identifying Peter Dutton as an alleged target. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian Teen found not guilty of plotting terror attack on Peter Dutton after court hears of ‘edgy joke’ Queensland boy, now aged 17, wrote of ‘autistic interest in bombs’ alongside notes speaking to his troubled state of mind, court told Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A teenager accused of plotting nailbomb attacks against the then opposition leader Peter Dutton and a Labour Day march has been found not guilty of preparing a terrorist act. The jury returned its verdict on Thursday after two days of deliberation. The teen, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, stood trial in the supreme court in Brisbane after pleading not guilty to one count of carrying out acts in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act. The family of the teen, now aged 17, gasped and cried when the verdict was read out. Brisbane teenager allegedly plotted terror attack on Liberal party targets, court hears Read more The boy was about to turn 16 when he rode his scooter around Brisbane’s suburbs to buy nails, metal pipes and ingredients for explosives in July 2024, the trial heard. The jury was shown dozens of text messages, online posts and hand-written diary entries that detailed the teen’s fixation on infamous terrorists, including the Oklahoma City bomber and the Christchurch mosque shooter. He texted a friend about the fictional terrorist attack at the end of the film Fight Club, in which a series of buildings are blown up, the court heard. “I think I’ve gained an autistic interest in bombs but it’s going to be tough to shake it off,” the teen wrote in his diary, the court heard. He engaged in “clearly dangerous experimentation” with household chemicals, defence barrister Laura Reece told the jury on Monday during her closing statement. The court heard the teen used his iPhone and laptop to search for “where is Peter Dutton located”, as part of an alleged plan to use bombings to oppose the Liberal party’s then policy of building multiple nuclear power stations in Australia. “Who are you trying to kill?” a friend of the teen texted. “Members of the Liberal party,” the teen replied. But the central issue at trial was the teen’s state of mind or intention at the time of the acts, Reece told the court. “He was a troubled kid. He was experimenting not only with explosives but with ideas and beliefs,” Reece said. “He was seeking out extremist material from wildly contradictory sources from the dark corners of the internet.” Reece said the teen h