Four men face court for alleged Anzac Day heckling in Melbourne 2025
Consensus Summary
Four men—Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, Michael Nelson, and Ian Lomax—are facing court in Melbourne for allegedly disrupting the 2025 Anzac Day Dawn Service by booing and yelling racist slogans during the Welcome to Country ceremony and while the Victorian Governor was speaking. Witnesses described the behaviour as 'disgusting' and 'upsetting', with attendees reporting a 'continual disruptive barrage' that continued beyond the Welcome to Country. The men are charged with offensive behaviour, breaching the Shrine of Remembrance Regulations Act, and taking part in a disturbance. Three of the accused—Hersant, Bull, and Nelson—are representing themselves and plan to argue their actions were protected political communications, while Lomax’s lawyer claims video footage does not show him committing the alleged offences. The hearing, set for five days, includes testimony from multiple witnesses and footage of the incident, which has drawn condemnation from political leaders and the RSL. The case follows a pattern of prior convictions for the men, including Hersant’s 2024 jail sentence for making a Nazi salute and charges related to an attack on an Indigenous site.
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Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Four men—Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, Michael Nelson, and Ian Lomax—are charged with offensive behaviour, offending against decency in the Shrine of Remembrance, and taking part in a disturbance within the Shrine during the 2025 Anzac Day Dawn Service in Melbourne.
- The alleged disruption began during Indigenous Elder Mark Brown’s Welcome to Country ceremony at approximately 5:40 AM on April 25, 2025.
- Jacob Hersant allegedly called out 'what about the Anzacs?' and 'We don’t need to be welcomed to our own country' during the service.
- Nathan Bull allegedly yelled 'The Anzacs fought for white Australians' and 'The first heads of the RSL were pro-White Australia'.
- Witnesses described the alleged behaviour as 'disgusting' and 'upsetting', with one attendee stating the hecklers showed 'no respect for the people who were there to honour their parents and grandparents'.
- Three of the accused—Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, and Michael Nelson—are representing themselves and plan to argue their alleged acts were protected political communications.
- Ian Lomax’s lawyer, Sam Norton, stated that none of the video footage in the case depicts his client saying or doing anything that could amount to the offences he was charged with.
- The hearing is taking place in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court and is expected to last five days, with up to 12 witnesses called by the prosecution.
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- Retiree Nigel Meinrath testified that he heard others also calling out but believed it wasn’t a 'pro-Anzac sentiment'.
- The Crown’s case outlined that the alleged incident continued when Victorian Governor Margaret Gardner was speaking.
- Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, and Michael Nelson are fighting charges self-represented, each flagging they would argue their alleged acts were protected political communications.
- Three of the four accused men—Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, and Michael Nelson—are well-known white supremacists, while Ian Lomax, a Ballarat dentist, was suspended from practising after allegations linking him to neo-Nazi rallies.
- Footage played in court showed members of the crowd urging the hecklers to be quiet, with Michael Nelson smiling when an ex-serviceman dragged him away.
- Political leaders and the RSL condemned the 2025 Anzac Day disruptions in the aftermath.
- Jacob Hersant was previously jailed for a month in 2024 after being found guilty of making a Nazi salute in public, and he and Thomas Sewell were convicted for violent disorder in 2021 after attacking hikers in a state park.
- Nathan Bull is facing separate charges over an alleged attack on Camp Sovereignty, an Indigenous site in Melbourne.
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- The ABC article describes Ian Lomax as a 'Ballarat dentist' who was suspended from practising, while NEWSCOMAU does not specify his profession beyond his name.
- NEWSCOMAU does not mention that three of the accused are 'well-known white supremacists', a detail only provided by ABC.
Source Articles
Dawn Service attendee ‘disgusted’ by act: court
A man attending the Anzac Day Dawn Service has told a court he was “disgusted” by an alleged effort to disrupt the Welcome to Country.
Alleged Anzac Day hecklers face court over 2025 booing
Witnesses have told a court they were "disgusted" when a group of men interrupted last year's Anzac Day Dawn Service in Melbourne.