Naveed Akram is discovered crying in his jail cell while he’s held in isolation – amid claims he could be preparing to turn on his father in court
Accused Bondi terrorist Naveed Akram has been found sobbing alone in his isolation cell at Goulburn Supermax, as sources say he is quietly crafting a defence that shifts blame onto his father.
Insiders told the Sydney Morning Herald the 24-year-old has spoken to police four times, with investigators believing a calculated narrative is now taking shape behind prison walls – one that paints him as a manipulated ‘lackey’ caught in his father’s deadly plot.
The pair allegedly gunned down 15 people at Chanukah by the Sea in December using legally acquired shotguns and rifles, before Sajid, 50, was shot dead by NSW Detective Senior Constable Cesar Barraza using his service-issued Glock.
Akram was left badly injured but survived the bloody rampage with explosives and Islamic State flags were later found inside the pair’s car.
Authorities had already placed Akram on the National Known Entity Management (NKEM) list around that time, a system used to track potential terror risks, with its highest tier reserved for active counter-terror investigations.
However, Akram was initially ranked a tier-three risk following an Islamic State probe in 2019, before being downgraded to tier four.
That decision was made after multiple interviews and agency engagements found no evidence of radicalisation, sources close to the investigation said.
Tiers three and four cover lower-priority persons of interest, with about 5,000 names on the list, forcing police to focus resources on the most urgent threats.
Insiders told the Sydney Morning Herald t he 24-year-old has spoken to police four times, with investigators believing a calculated narrative is now taking shape behind prison walls – one that paints him as a manipulated ‘lackey’ caught in his father Sajid’s (pictured) deadly plot
Akram has been slapped with fresh charges while behind bars, including ten counts of shooting with intent to murder and six counts of discharging a firearm to resist arrest.
Court records show the additional charges were laid in April but he has yet to enter pleas.
He remains in strict isolation at Goulburn Supermax, where guards have reportedly found him crying in his cell on multiple occasions.
‘Get used to it,’ one officer said bluntly to the SMH, warning the accused faces a lengthy wait before trial.
As the case builds, sources say Akram is now expected to argue he acted under his father’s influence.
As the case builds, sources claim Akram is already laying the groundwork for his defence, alleging he was coerced or brainwashed by his father.
The accused had links to a Bankstown street preaching group in 2019 known to have hosted Islamic State sympathisers, though investigators say Sajid’s path to extremism has proven harder to trace.
What is clear, according to one police source, is the war in Gaza played a key role in Sajid’s alleged motivation to target Jewish Australians.
That was laid bare, they said, in a ‘confronting’ video manifesto allegedly showing the Akrams standing in front of Islamic State flags and discussing their plans.
Sajid had spent more than a decade trying to obtain a gun licence, finally succeeding in 2023 despite his son’s past associations.
Just months later, in October, Hamas launched its attack on Israel, triggering the war in Gaza.
Sources familiar with the Akrams’ history say the pair were consuming a dangerous mixture of extremist material locally and overseas as their views hardened.
Among the influences, investigators say, was notorious al-Qaeda cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-Yemeni preacher killed in a US drone strike ordered by then-president Barack Obama in 2011.
Al-Awlaki is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in radicalising English-speaking jihadists, with experts linking his sermons to dozens of extremists across the US and Europe.
His reach has been chillingly broad, inspiring attackers behind some of the West’s most notorious terror plots.
These include the 2009 Fort Hood massacre in Texas, where 13 people were shot dead, and a failed attempt that same year to blow up a passenger plane using explosives hidden in underwear.
It’s believed Naveed and Sajid were influenced by notorious al-Qaeda cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, a preacher killed in a US drone strike ordered by then-president Barack Obama in 2011
Followers of al-Awlaki’s teachings have also been tied to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and the 2016 Orlando nightclub massacre underscoring the deadly influence investigators believe may have shaped the Akrams’ worldview.
The Bondi terrorist attack was Australia’s deadliest mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.