Police have charged seven men for allegedly performing the Nazi salute after a photo of the illegal acts circulated online.
The men aged between 19 to 25 from suburbs surrounding Geelong and towards Melbourne are accused of performing the prohibited salutes at a venue on February 8, police said.
Detectives retrieved CCTV footage from the Geelong venue following an extensive investigation after a photo of the men engaging in the act circulated online.
All seven men have been charged for public display or performance of Nazi symbols or gestures and will front Geelong Magistrates Court on May 6.
People found guilty of publicly displaying Nazi symbols or gestures face fines of up to $23,710, 12 months’ jail or both.
“There is absolutely no place in our society for anti-Semitic, racist or hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated,” a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
The latest charges come after a man, part of a group of 15 men and one youth, was charged with performing the illegal salute during a protest in front of a war memorial in Adelaide in January.
A 68-year-old man was charged in December after allegedly performing the banned salute inside a hotel in Sydney’s CBD and did not leave when asked.
Charges were dropped against a veteran Victoria Police officer who was alleged to have made the gesture over successive days in October.
A man was charged with doing a Nazi salute at a march in the Sydney suburb of Newtown in November after allegedly stepping in front of demonstrators and making threatening remarks.
Far-right extremist and self-proclaimed “Hitler soldier” Jacob Hersant in October became the first Victorian found guilty of intentionally performing the Nazi salute in public.
He was sentenced to one month in prison but freed on bail pending an appeal.
State and federal governments have banned Nazi symbols and gestures following concerns of rising anti-Semitism.
