Bid to suppress names of alleged Bondi shooter denied in court

Thursday, 2 April 2026 13:00

A move to hide the names of alleged Bondi terrorist Naveed Akram's family has been rejected despite death threats and harassment by vigilantes.

The 24-year-old gunman lost his application for a court gag order over the names and home address of his mother, brother and sister, in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday.

Judge Hugh Donnelly ruled the orders were not necessary because Naveed's driver's licence, including his home address, had already been widely shared in Australia and internationally.

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The move was a win for several media outlets - News Corp, Nine newspapers, the Guardian and the ABC - who opposed the orders in court.

Judge Donnelly said the accused terrorist's mother had also sat down for an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald soon after the tragic mass shooting.

A 10-year-old girl was among 15 people killed when Akram and his father, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach on December 14.

"This case has unprecedented public interest, outrage, anger and grief," Judge Donnelly said on Thursday.

His mother and siblings had been subjected to threats and harassment by vigilantes, the judge noted.

This included death threats in person, by phone and online chat, strangers arriving at their home late at night, pork thrown in their front yard and a bottle full of suspected urine placed at their home.

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Naveed Akram court sketch March 17. Rocco Fazzari/AAP PHOTOS

"(His mother) fears for her life and the lives of her children," the judge said.

Judge Donnelly acknowledged the threats and that his mother and siblings had nothing to do with the Bondi attack.

However, he said any order would be futile given that the names and addresses were well and truly in the public domain.

"This case is exceptional by virtue of the sheer magnitude and commentary on social media," he said.

Any suppression order would only apply within Australia, with the court unable to force overseas publishers to comply.

There was also no need to suppress the workplaces and school of Akram's family, as there was no evidence that threats had occurred there, the judge found.