An Asian man has been granted bail in Sydney after allegedly sending two emails threatening to kill Communications Minister Anika Wells and her family.
Steven Ly, 31, was arrested at a home in Bankstown on Friday by an Australian Federal Police National Security Investigations (NSI) team after receiving a referral from Ms Wells about the emails in November.
Police allege the emails contained threats to kill Ms Wells and her family, seized Mr Ly’s electronic devices, and charged him with one count of “using a carriage service to threaten to kill”, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment.
A 35-year-old Sydney man, Steven Ly, has been granted bail after being arrested and charged for allegedly sending emails threatening to kill Communications Minister Anika Wells and her family. pic.twitter.com/f9tnPZLclq
— The Noticer (@NoticerNews) December 12, 2025
Mr Ly was then granted bail at Bankstown Local Court, with conditions requiring him to surrender his passport, report to police three times a week, and banning him from going near or contacting Ms Wells, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
He will face court again on December 23.
The bail decision comes after White Australia spokesman Joel Davis was refused bail after being charged with “using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence” for a Telegram post allegedly telling his followers to “rhetorically rape” federal MP Allegra Spender.
Mr Davis was also arrested by an AFP NSI team, refused police bail, ruled an unacceptable risk of reoffending by a magistrate the next day, and then refused permission to request a bail review during second court appearance, and has been in jail on remand since November 20, missing the birth of his child.
He will apply for bail again in court on December 23.
The NSI teams, which were set up in September to “target groups and individuals causing high levels of harm to Australia’s social cohesion, including the targeting of the Jewish community”, carried out 14 raids earlier this month targeting Nazi symbols, and laid charges against three men.
A 43-year-old UK citizen living in Queensland was charged with “public display of prohibited Nazi symbols”, and “using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence” for a series of X posts containing swastikas.
Another Queensland man, 21, was charged with two counts of possessing or controlling violent extremist material for allegedly possessing a video and a book PDF, and was refused bail to face court again in January.
A 25-year-old Sydney man was also given a court attendance notice for allegedly performing a Nazi salute.
Header image: Left, right, Steven Ly being arrested (AFP).
