Victoria Police’s Bomb Response Unit and the Australian Defence Force to attend the scene and carry out controlled detonations to render the devices safe.

“Whether it’s New Zealand, England, Ireland, where they can come across here into Victoria… it gives them the opportunity to come across, but it also fills the void of recruiting in a shorter period of time.”

“I am lucky to be alive,” Singh said, describing the moment as the culmination of repeated abuse directed at vulnerable older members of the community.

An international investigation into the suspected “mother ship” and its organisers remains ongoing, with authorities indicating further arrests are possible.

“I respectfully submit that disqualifying my application on this basis is disproportionate and inconsistent with the principles of procedural fairness,” he wrote.

Key source countries include New Zealand, the United Kingdom and China, while Australians are increasingly returning from destinations such as Indonesia and Japan.

Victoria Police had not publicly confirmed an arrest or charges in the matter at the time of publication.

Witnesses reported the pair directed racial abuse at the driver before the situation turned violent.

Party insiders told The Australia Today that Heath secured 59 votes to Smethurst’s 31, giving the conservative right faction member a decisive victory.

Victoria Police allege the syndicate, which began operating in Victoria before relocating to Queensland in October last year, stole more than 150 vehicles worth over $20 million before moving north.