Melbourne Man Charged With Distributing Thousands of Daesh Extremist Files Online

A man in Melbourne has been accused of pledging allegiance to the Daesh group and spreading thousands of pieces of extremist propaganda online over several years, according to Australian federal police.

The 65-year-old Australian citizen, whose name has not been released, is charged with being a member of a terrorist organization and with transmitting violent extremist material through an encrypted messaging application. He was scheduled to appear in a Melbourne court on Wednesday. The offenses carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Authorities say the man sent 10,000 files containing extremist material between 2015 and 2020, including content depicting executions and torture, as well as Daesh propaganda. Investigators also allege he shared information on evading law enforcement detection and provided instructional guides on planning and carrying out mass casualty attacks.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Paula Hudson told reporters in Canberra that the scale and distribution of the materials identified the man as a principal distributor of Daesh propaganda. “The material glorified acts of violence and terrorism, spreading hateful ideology that is designed to radicalize others,” Hudson said.

The investigation was initiated when border officials inspected the man’s luggage as he departed Australia for a six-month trip to Egypt in 2020. Authorities said he has not been known to have traveled abroad since then and was not linked to any attack or plot.

This arrest marks the seventh detention in Victoria state since May in connection with allegations of possessing or distributing Daesh content online. Australia’s federal police have not indicated whether the latest arrest is connected to the other six cases.

Earlier this month, a 30-year-old Melbourne man was arrested and charged with possessing violent extremist content while attempting to leave Australia for the Middle East. Police allege he participated in an online group chat with five other Victoria men arrested in May, all of whom face charges related to possessing extremist material, including Daesh propaganda.

The Islamic State group has been significantly weakened since a 2019 United States-led military intervention expelled it from territory it had seized in Iraq and Syria, but its cells remain active and it has inspired independent attacks in western countries. In Australia, authorities allege that a mass shooting at a Hanukkah event in 2025, in which two men are accused of killing 15 Jewish people, was motivated by the shooters’ Daesh affiliations.

According to Australia’s national security agencies, an estimated 200 Australians traveled to Syria and Iraq to join Daesh between 2012 and 2019. Dozens more are believed to have supported the group by assisting overseas members or by planning or carrying out terrorist attacks within Australia.

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