Two people have been charged over alleged online threats against the Labor deputy Senate leader, Kristina Keneally.
The Australian federal police revealed a 29-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman will face court in April after raids on Tuesday over the alleged threats, made via a social media messaging service.
Keneally, Labor’s home affairs spokesperson, confirmed on Sky News the charges relate to threats against her and praised police for their efforts and investigation.
In a statement, the AFP said the man from Harrington Park in Sydney’s west and the woman from Maitland had “been served court attendance notices following [alleged] threats made against an Australian senator via a social media messaging service”.
“The man and woman are expected to face Sydney central local court on 13 April 2022,” it said.
The AFP said it will allege in court that the man and woman were “responsible for sending two separate threatening messages on 21 and 22 November 2021 which threatened or advocated violent acts”.
AFP investigators executed search warrants at the homes of both people on Tuesday and seized a mobile phone for further examination from the man’s Harrington Park residence.
The man has been charged with threatening to cause harm to a commonwealth public official and the woman with using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence.
The offences are punishable by up to seven years and up to five years in prison, respectively.
Keneally told Sky News that as the matter is “before the court” she would “not go into the content or circumstances” of the messages.
She thanked the federal police for taking threats to parliamentarians “seriously”.
Australian law enforcement agencies are increasingly worried about threats to the safety of politicians, particularly in the wake of extremist and violent rhetoric directed at them during anti-lockdown protests.
Keneally told Guardian Australia: “Having served as a state MP, [New South Wales] premier and been in public life for 20 years this is not the first time I have received threats, and not the first time police have had to make arrests.
“But what is different in the current context is that there’s a level of anger and frustration, particularly coming out of Covid, that is sometimes expressing itself in very challenging ways.”
Keneally said she was aware of “many incidences where members of parliament have been on the receiving end of attempts to threaten and harass”.
“The AFP have spoken about [the] need to upgrade security coming into the federal election – that is important for members, candidates and the general public.”
Violent incidents overseas including the alleged stabbing of Sir David Amess and murder of MP Jo Cox in the UK have also put authorities on alert.
