Australia police report multiple violent crimes and extremist charges

Authorities in Australia are addressing several violent incidents and criminal charges across multiple states.

In Sydney, two teenagers, aged 14 and 16, have been charged with the murder of 23-year-old university student Marco Tapia. The incident, which occurred in Glen Alpine on September 1, was a mistaken-identity shooting linked to organized crime. Police allege the teenagers provided the weapon and staged vehicles for the attackers. Additionally, four individuals, including a 16-year-old, are being extradited from Melbourne to New South Wales after being linked to a firearm used in the fatal shooting of Tapia and other shootings in Hurstville and Turrella.

In Brisbane, Matthew Alexander Donald de Campo pleaded guilty to wilful damage after crashing a vehicle into the Brisbane Synagogue gates, causing $12,000 in damage. Prosecutors dropped hate crime allegations, citing de Campo's drug-induced psychosis and intoxication at the time of the incident. Separately, an 18-year-old in Brisbane faces 30 charges, including possessing violent extremist material and child abuse content, following an FBI tip-off regarding social media posts targeting Muslims and Jews.

In Melbourne, a 15-year-old girl has been charged following a violent brawl at Robert Bruce Reserve, where another teenager was allegedly stabbed six times. In the Sutherland Shire, a 15-year-old has been charged with multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault and choking following incidents occurring between December and July.