Terror scheme charges tipped

POLICE have “very strong evidence” about the alleged plot by a Sydney terror cell to bomb a passenger plane, both Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller declared yesterday.

Police are confident of laying charges soon against the three men who have been detained since Saturday under special terror laws.

“We mobilised quickly and from my perspective we stopped what would have been a terrible crime,” Mr Fuller said.

The aviation threat level set by the spy agency ASIO, which was raised last week to “probable” in the wake of intelligence reports about the alleged plot to target an Etihad A380 out of Sydney, has been restored to the previous level of “possible” but security will remain heightened at airports.

“The evidence gathered is very strong,” Mr Fuller said.

He said forensic investigations were looking into items seized from the five homes raided on Saturday in Surry Hills, Wiley Park, Punchbowl and Lakemba and police had done a “fantastic job”.

“We are forensically going through these premises to make sure every piece of evidence is identified, and that will go (into) the brief of evidence,” he said.

“I think in the coming days, as this matter progresses, in my opinion people will be charged.

“[When] the facts are tendered, you will understand about the police operation more holistically.”

His comments came after News Corp yesterday revealed the plan was to use a sacrificial lamb to carry the bomb hidden in a kitchen meat mincer on board as cabin baggage, unaware he was on a suicide mission.

The three men still being questioned by police include brothers-in-law Khaled Merhi, a spray painter, and former butcher Khaled Khayat, along with one of Mr Khayat’s relatives. A fourth man, Abdul Merhi, 50, was released on Tuesday without charges being laid.

Mr Turnbull said at a press conference in Perth that the plot had been “disrupted and contained” but enhanced security would continue at airports, not all of the measures being obvious to travellers.

But he promised that the delays which have seen passengers queue out of the doors at Sydney’s airports should be reduced as the new security measures were “modified”.

“This has been a very successful exercise ... the police have uncovered very substantial evidence,” Mr Turnbull said. “The advice we have is the threat to aviation has been disrupted and contained.”

Travellers are being advised to arrive two hours before an international flight and one hour before a domestic flight.