Prominent Australian nationalists Blair Cottrell and Thomas Sewell have been raided by two teams of dozens of armed federal and interstate police over a baseless accusation that Mr Cottrell made a “Nazi salute” in front of a Muslim woman.
Officers from the Australian Federal Police, Western Australia Police, and Victoria Police’s counter-terrorism unit carried out search warrants at the Melbourne homes of Mr Cottrell and Mr Sewell at about 7am on Wednesday morning, detaining them for hours and seizing their phones.
The officers told Mr Cottrell they were investigating a claim that he performed a Roman salute in front of a Muslim woman dressed in a burqa at the University of Western Australia on June 27 as Mr Sewell filmed, but admitted they had no evidence to back up the allegations.
Mr Cottrell, who has not been charged and denies making the gesture, told Noticer News he was questioned extensively while his entire house was searched by 12 to 15 officers and his belongings were photographed by a forensics team in a process that took five and a half hours.
He said police claimed a burqa-clad woman was about 15 metres away when he allegedly raised his right arm in a Nazi salute while making a Hitler moustache gesture with his left hand for seven seconds, a story he said was “obviously made up” and had the “vibe of a hoax”.
“It’s a really unusual pretext for a raid. There are two possibilities: someone wants to screw with me and they’ve made up a story, or something more sinister is going on,” Mr Cottrell said, adding that it was the first time he has been raided by police for political activism.
“I’m a little spooked. The story is so theatrical and absurd, it reminds me of stories coming out of the Jewish community in recent months, sensationalist claims that don’t add up. It’s all very suspicious, I’m not exactly sure what they’re up to.”
Father-of-two Mr Sewell, who had his door broken down and his phone and clothing seized following the eight-hour search of his family home, described the investigation as a “Nazi salute hoax” and said it set a “worrying precedent for a new kind of swatting”.
“They raided our houses to try and find evidence to support this false allegation by a Muslim woman who supposedly recognised us in Western Australia,” Mr Sewell said.
“These people are scum, they just make up lies.”
Mr Cottrell said he was questioned about his political ideology, whether he is a member of the National Socialist Network (which he is not), and whether he made a Nazi salute to “antagonise” a Muslim woman.
“They made me sit in the loungeroom for hours while the forensics team went through my photos, my clothes, Australia Day pamphlets, my personal diary. It felt like I was being investigated for a murder,” Mr Cottrell said.
“This was a big operation. Federal police, a lot of them, travelling across the country to raid my home over an alleged Nazi salute for which they have no evidence. It’s a notable escalation.”
He said that before police left the one who appeared in charge told him: “Western Australia Police do not tolerate racism or vilification and that it doesn’t matter where in Australia you live, they will find you and investigate.”
“I’m no stranger to drama, it hasn’t gotten me particularly distressed, I just want my phone back,” Mr Cottrell said.
“I’ve lost all the numbers of my personal training clients, and missed three appointments with clients today and wasn’t even able to call them to explain, which seriously impacts my livelihood.”
The Roman salute has been illegal Australia-wide since January 2024, and if charged Mr Cottrell will be the first person the laws have been used against.
The gesture is also covered by Western Australia’s “Nazi hate symbols” ban, which came into effect in March, and last month Perth man Samuel Croll, 20, became the first person charged under the state laws after allegedly performing a Nazi salute during a livestream and posting a clip on social media platform X.
In video of the search of Mr Sewell’s home seen by Noticer News one of the officers asked if he had anything he wished to say as they finished executing the warrant.
“We’re going to win,” Mr Sewell said.
“And we’re going to have our justice when we win. And you’re going to feel very ashamed of yourself.”
Header image: Left, Blair Cottrell. Right, Thomas Sewell (supplied).
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