National

Bondi massacre terror accused set to face new charges

May 6, 2026

Naveed Akram (file) — Fifteen people were killed when Naveed Akram and his father opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration. -PR IMAGE

A man accused of unleashing the country's deadliest terror attack is likely to be hit with a slew of new charges.

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Naveed Akram opened fire on a crowd of people celebrating Hanukkah at Bondi Beach alongside his father, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, on December 14.

The attack left 15 people dead - including a 10-year-old girl - and dozens more injured.

The elder Akram was shot dead by police, while his son was charged with 59 offences and held at Goulburn's supermax prison.

The existing charges included committing a terrorist act, 15 counts of murder, and 40 charges of attempted murder over his alleged role in the massacre.

Court records show the 24-year-old is expected to be hit with a further 19 charges, including 10 counts of shooting with intent to murder and six counts of discharging a firearm with intent to resist arrest.

The additional charges were added to the court file in April, before a mention of the matter in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.

But Akram's lawyer Leonie Gittani said outside court that the defence team haven't received new court attendance notices.

"Once these charges - if they're to be filed - once they're filed, we'll deal with them at that point," she said.

Charges are often added, dropped, or restructured during the early stages of court matters before pleas are entered.

Akram has not yet been required to enter pleas to any of the charges against him.

He was expected to dial into the court via audiovisual link for a hearing about extending a prohibition on publishing the names and identities of survivors of the attack.

More victims are seeking to be covered by a court suppression order made in December which gives those who survived the massacre the ability to choose if or when they speak to the media about the tragedy.

Akram did not appear on screen as the hearing was adjourned until June.

The father-and-son attack was Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.

The men allegedly tossed three pipe bombs filled with steel ball bearings and a tennis ball bomb into a crowd celebrating Hanukkah at Archer Park before opening fire.

None of the bombs detonated.

A box-like bomb was also allegedly found in the boot of their car while two hand-painted ISIS flags were also in the vehicle.