NSW rushed through laws in the wake of antisemitic attacks. What happens now police say the incidents were a ‘con job’?

A caravan allegedly containing explosives was found on the side of a road in Dural, a suburb on Sydney’s outskirts. Police now say it was a ‘con job’ by organised crime figures. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

At the end of January, the New South Wales premier stood grim faced, surrounded by the state’s most senior police officers. It had been leaked to the media that a caravan had been found parked hazardously in a quiet town on the outskirts of Sydney, laden with explosives. Inside were a list of Jewish targets.

“This is the discovery of a potential mass casualty event,” Chris Minns told reporters. “There’s only one way of calling it out, and that is terrorism.”