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A Queensland man who was planning a suicide terrorist attack on Australian soil has been sentenced to 17 years in jail.
Agim Kruezi, 25, was arrested in counter-terrorism raids in Logan in September 2014, and pleaded guilty to making acts of preparation for a terrorist attack and making preparatory acts for incursion to a foreign state.
Crown Prosecutor Lincoln Crowley told the court Kruezi was planning "to kill random, innocent people in a public place and ultimately die as a martyr in that attack".
"[Kruezi] demonstrated support for martyrdom, that he believed that martyrs automatically go to heaven and believed that he'd be in heaven soon," Mr Crowley said.
When he was arrested officers discovered a loaded 0.22 semi-automatic sawn-off rifle, two balaclavas, two machetes, a letter from DFAT saying his passport was cancelled, a photocopy of a book titled "Jihad", and an Islamic State flag pinned to his bedroom wall.
In the days before his arrest Kruezi purchased a jerry can with 10 litres of petrol and went shopping for glass bottles and corks with the intention of making Molotov cocktails.
He also bought a bow and arrow because he was angry about his passport being cancelled by Australian authorities, when he planned to travel and fight in Syria.
Kruezi's laptop contained two videos of him shooting arrows into a styrofoam head and instructions on how to carry out beheadings.
Justice Roslyn Atkinson also said she was not convinced Kruezi no longer held extreme views.
"There is no evidence that you have changed your views," she said.
"I see no evidence of remorse.
"You also valued your beliefs over the safety and lives of people who live and work in this community."
Justice Atkinson said it was necessary for counter-terrorism officers to arrest Kruezi when they did "in my view, to prevent an attack".
"[Your] defence submits there was no suggestion of an imminent attack," she said.
"[But] I am satisfied you were well underway in planning an attack using the hardware you had acquired."
Kruezi's family sat behind him in court, and wept as the sentence was read out.
As he was lead away in handcuffs, they shouted "We'll see you soon, we love you."
Kruezi could be eligible for parole in 13 years, but the State Government has the option of applying for him to be held in detention after his sentence ends.
Topics: courts-and-trials, law-crime-and-justice, terrorism, unrest-conflict-and-war, logan-city-dc-4114, underwood-4119, brisbane-4000, qld, australia
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