Neo-Nazis found guilty of offensive behaviour for Anzac Day service booing

Neo-Nazis who loudly booed during a Melbourne Anzac Day dawn service have been found guilty of offensive behaviour.

The group disrupted proceedings at the Shrine of Remembrance in 2025 when Indigenous elder Mark Brown took to the stage to conduct a Welcome to Country.

On Thursday, Magistrate James FitzGerald found Jacob Hersant, Nathan Bull, Michael Nelson guilty of behaving in an offensive manner in public.

A fourth man, Ian Lomax, was also found guilty.

Prosecutors alleged that booing and racist slogans were yelled during parts of the service. The loud heckling was heard by thousands who had gathered at the shrine to honour fallen soldiers.

Magistrate FitzGerald said he accepted there were differing views in the community about Welcome to Country ceremonies.

But he said it was beyond reasonable doubt that booing at an Anzac Day ceremony was offensive behaviour, given the event is "hushed and reverential nature".

"The dawn service at the Shrine of Remembrance is not a time and place for noisy argument, heated debate, or the indignant expression of political views," Magistrate FitzGerald said.

"It was transgressive behaviour that would be likely to arouse significant anger, significant resentment, outrage, disgust, or hatred in the mind of a reasonable person."

The magistrate found the booing breached Victoria's Summary Offences Act.

He dismissed two alternative charges brought by prosecutors under the Shrine of Remembrance Act.

Witness 'upset and disgusted'

The hearing is continuing, with the magistrate hearing legal arguments about the sentences the men should face.

First-time offenders can face jail time of up to two months or a fine of up to $2,000.

When the booing occurred at the shrine, some in the crowd tried to counter the insults by cheering and clapping.

Hersant was later escorted from the area by police, while Nelson was also dragged away by an ex-serviceman.

During a hearing last month, a woman standing near Nelson and Lomax testified she was "upset and disgusted".

Hersant, Bull and Nelson are well-known white supremacists, while Lomax, a Ballarat dentist, was suspended from practising due to allegations connecting him to neo-Nazi rallies.

During the hearing, Hersant, Bull and Nelson admitted causing the disruptions but argued it was an act of political speech against Welcome to Country ceremonies.

"We weren't booing Anzac Day," Hersant said.

Defence lawyer Sam Norton, acting for Mr Lomax, argued evidence before the court did not show his client booing.

Hersant was the first Victorian to be convicted of performing a Nazi salute in public, and recently spent a month in jail after losing an appeal.

He also has a conviction for violent disorder after participating in a group attack on hikers in Victoria's Cathedral Ranges.

Hersant was a senior figure in the National Socialist Network (NSN) before the group disbanded earlier this year.

The NSN, a neo-Nazi organisation, was listed as a prohibited hate group by the federal government under laws introduced after the Bondi terror attack.