An Australian police sergeant is likely to face charges over a Nazi salute

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian state police chief apologized to the Jewish community Saturday after a sergeant allegedly performed a banned Nazi salute.

The 65-year-old domestic violence policy and law instructor at Melbourne’s Victoria State Police Academy is charged over the gesture and for praising Nazi leader Adolf Hitler with the words “Heil Hitler” on Tuesday and Wednesday for the academy. personnel and recruits, said Police Chief Shane Patton.

“I would like to immediately express my disappointment, my disgust and my anger at this abhorrent behavior,” Patton said at a news conference.

“There is simply no place for this type of behavior in our society, let alone in this police force. For that reason, I would like to offer my deepest apologies to the Jewish community, but also to the community as a whole,” Patton added.

Patton said the alleged behavior would exacerbate the grief and pain felt by the Jewish community following the anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.

The police officer, whose name has not been released, served more than 40 years. She was suspended on Friday and interviewed by professional internal investigators on Saturday.

She will likely be charged via a summons, according to a police statement after Patton’s news conference. This offense carries a possible maximum penalty of 12 months in prison and a fine of up to 23,000 Australian dollars ($16,000).

Performing Nazi gestures and displaying Nazi symbols such as the swastika have been banned by various state and federal laws since 2022.

The scandal will come in a week. A Melbourne judge told self-confessed Nazi Jacob Hersant he will become the first person in Australia to be sentenced to prison for performing the same banned gesture when the 25-year-old appears in court next month.

In June, three football fans were fined for saluting during a match in Sydney. The men were the first to be convicted of such crimes in Australia and have appealed.

The Police Association of Victoria, a police union, described the allegations as serious and said officers should be held to the same standards as the rest of the community.

“The Police Association has consistently condemned this insulting gesture and urged the government to strengthen legislation and penalties against those who carry it out,” a union statement said.

Anti-Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich, a leading opponent of anti-Semitism in Australia, praised the police’s swift response to the officer’s alleged actions.

“A Nazi salute is not just a gesture – it is a horrific symbol of genocide, terror and anti-Semitism and it is beyond disturbing that a police officer would wield this emblem of hate,” he said in a statement.

Patton said the suspended officer had no history of extreme views and her motives were unknown.

‘But the motive doesn’t matter. This behavior should not, cannot and will not be tolerated,” Patton said.