A 22-year-old man charged with a terrorist attack and attempted murder in south-west Sydney was inspired by the so-called Islamic State group, New South Wales police say.
The man, accused of stabbing a 59-year-old man a number of times at a reserve in Minto on Saturday afternoon, has been refused bail today.
Photo: RNZ / Alexander Robertson
The victim suffered injuries to his body and hands, and remains in hospital in a serious condition.
"We will be alleging before court that this was an act inspired by ISIS, it was a deliberate act, it resulted in a person receiving extremely serious injuries," NSW Deputy Police Commissioner Catherine Burns said.
The man was known to police, she added, but not for links to any known terror groups.
"[He is] not someone who was front and centre in our work at the moment," Ms Burns said.
"We don't believe he was connected with any terrorist group. This is the challenge."
When police arrived at the scene on Saturday, the suspect attempted to stab an officer through the car window, officers said.
"We will allege that he was going to attack them also," Ms Burns said.
A large knife was seized for forensic examination by police.
There had "clearly been some degree of planning", but it was not known for how long, she said.
-ABC
