An Australian police sergeant likely to be charged over a Nazi salute

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian state police chief apologized to the Jewish community on Saturday after a sergeant allegedly performed an outlawed Nazi salute.

The 65-year-old instructor on domestic violence policy and law at the Victoria state police academy in Melbourne is facing charges for the gesture and for praising Nazi leader Adolf Hitler with the words, “Heil Hitler” on Tuesday and Wednesday in front of academy staff and recruits, Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said.

“I want to express just here at the outset my disappointment, my disgust, my anger at this appalling conduct,” Patton told a press conference.

“There is simply no place for this type of conduct in our society, let alone in this police force. For that reason, I want to profoundly apologize to the Jewish community but also to the community as whole,” Patton added.

Patton said the alleged behavior would exacerbate the grief and pain the Jewish community felt following the Oct. 7 anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel.

The police officer, whose name has not been released, has served for more than 40 years. She was suspended from duty on Friday and was interviewed by professional standards internal investigators on Saturday.

She will likely be charged by summons, a police statement said after Patton’s news conference. The offence carries a potential maximum penalty of 12 months in prison and a fine of up to 23,000 Australian dollars ($16,000).

Performing Nazi gestures and displaying Nazi symbols such as the swastika have been banned by various state and federal laws since 2022.

The scandal comes in a week a Melbourne judge told self-described Nazi Jacob Hersant that he will become the first person in Australia to be sentenced to prison