From the West Australian:

ANM book behind racist bomb plot
Ryan Pedler

A racially motivated organisation planned to firebomb four Chinese restaurants in Perth in 2004 as a publicity stunt before its leader released a book, a District Court jury has been told.

Prosecutor Alan Troy said five members of the Australian Nationalist Movement planned for the fire bombings to be executed just days before Jack van Tongeren released The ANM Story.

But Mr Troy said police foiled the plan and ANM members Ian “Monty” Johnson and Daniel Tyrone Klavins had agreed to give evidence in court against one of their co-conspirators, John Anthony Van Blitterswyk.

Mr Troy was making his opening statement at the trial of Mr Van Blitterswyk on a charge of conspiring with four other alleged ANM members Mr van Tongeren, Mr Klavins, Mr Johnson and Matthew Peter Billing to fire bomb the Chinese restaurants in Perth between May 1 and August 6, 2004.

Mr Van Blitterswyk has pleaded not guilty His trial started on Monday but was aborted yesterday after two jurors fell ill.

A new trial will start today after a new jury is selected. The opening statements will be delivered again. A suppression order prohibiting publication of the trial proceedings was lifted yesterday after it was successfully challenged by The West Australian.

Mr Troy told the court Mr van Tongeren and Mr Van Blitterswyk established the ANM some time before September 2002. The ANM was “motivated by some form of political, racial ideology” and Mr van Tongeren and Mr Van Blitterswyk had intended to run for the Senate.

He said Mr van Tongeren and Mr Van Blitterswyk recruited Mr Klavins to the ANM at a meeting in October 2002 and that during the meeting Mr van Tongeren claimed he was the leader of the ANM and Mr Van Blitterswyk was second-in-command.

Mr Johnson and Mr Billing were also recruited.

Mr Troy said that by June 2004 the five men had conspired to fire bomb the Man-Lin Chinese restaurant in Karawara, the Ko-Sing Chinese restaurant in Lynwood and the Foo-Win Chinese restaurant in Southlands, as well as a fourth Chinese restaurant to be chosen later.

The fire bombings were to be carried out in the days before Mr van Tongeren held a press conference and released the book in mid-2004, Mr Troy said. ANM members later postponed the fire bombings until after a racist graffiti campaign around Perth.

There was also evidence ANM members had suggested murdering Asians, acquiring firearms to shoot their way out of trouble and setting up safe houses where they could hide from authorities, Mr Troy said.

Mr Van Blitterswyk’s lawyer, Richard Utting, said the alleged fire bombing conspiracy was “a ridiculous affair” and told the jury they would also hear other things of “stupidity and fantasy”, including alleged ANM plans to kidnap Prime Minister John Howard and to “send people down to Swanbourne to take on the SAS”.

Mr Utting told the jury they should question whether Mr Klavins and Mr Johnson were “making up stories to get themselves out of the manure”.

Mr Utting said Mr Klavins was a “grubby racist” and he had “got a suspended sentence” because of “his so-called co-operation with police”. Mr Johnson had avoided being charged.