A Rockingham man who bombarded government offices with more than 1100 harassing phone calls in less than two months has been sentenced in the Perth District Court.
It is reported that the 46-year-old man labelled staff as everything from ‘terrorists’ and ‘scabs’ to ‘cowards’.
The man was found guilty of two counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend, contrary to section 474.17(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
AFP Inspector Shona Davis said the nuisance calls disrupted operations and distressed staff.
“These types of calls – many of which contained abusive and highly insulting language – can be extremely upsetting and concerning to the people who answer them, and a waste of resources for the offices targeted.”
Insp Davis added that the judge acknowledged the significant impact the campaign of harassment had on the functioning of government offices.
“The AFP has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to any form of harassment and will prosecute anyone caught breaking the law in such a way.”
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) charged the man in February 2022 after uncovering that in November 2021 he had made nearly 500 abusive calls to a Federal Minister’s office.
Just weeks later, in December, he placed more than 650 offensive and repetitive calls to a Federal Government department.
The man received 12 months’ imprisonment for each offence, to be served concurrently, but was released on a 12-month good behaviour recognisance order after the court considered the 42 days he spent in custody following his 2022 arrest.
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