Australian Police Advise Parents To 'Monitor' Their Children's Social Media After Mother's Day Terror Plot

Australian police have warned parents to be aware of their children’s whereabouts and monitor social activity after authorities had stopped another terror plot on Mother’s Day. The 17-year-old teen, whose name is suppressed, will be facing the court after the alleged plot to carry out an attack on Mother’s Day in Melbourne.

Authorities found three home-made pipe bombs inside the teen’s room after police searched the family home in the affluent suburb of Greenvale. Mike Phelan, deputy commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, said he could “absolutely guarantee” that many lives had been saved because of the counter-terrorism raids conducted by police.

“We may not know exactly where it was going to occur, nor when it was exactly going to occur, but let me tell you, something was going to happen, and as a result of Victoria Police and AFP interception yesterday some Victorians are going to be alive because of it,” said Phelan. The police declined to reveal more details about their search in the family home but only said there was “no longer an imminent threat” to the public, reports New Zealand Herald.

Phelan added that even if security agencies are working hard to track the activities of potentially dangerous and disaffected young Muslims, the police also need the help of family, friends, classmates, teachers and community groups. The latest arrest in connection with an alleged terror plot is a “sobering reminder” of the importance of parents being involved in the lives of their children.

On the suspected teen’s Facebook page, he wrote that Muslims should hate the “kafir” r unbelievers. Earlier reports sad he blocked his parents and relatives from seeing his posts. The deputy police commissioner said it was usually the family and friends that can observe the early signs of suspicious behaviour. The Herald Sun reports that police are now on their fourth day since last Friday in examining the home of the alleged terrorist in Melbourne.

Police had moved the official tape and widened the search area while media was forced to move away from the property. Police officers have spent the last couple of days searching the house for homemade bombs. The search was extended to a nearby park and creek. About a dozen AFP officers were seen outside the home of the teen while the investigation continued.

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