A NSW police internal investigation has concluded that off-duty officers who allegedly shouted “Allahu Akbar boom” and “Hezbollah” at a Christmas party after a verbal dispute with a Muslim man living next door were simply engaging in “banter between friends”.
The incident allegedly occurred on December 13 in Glenmore Park, Sydney, following a complaint by the Muslim man about water from the neighbors’ swimming pool leaking into his property.
CCTV footage reviewed by Guardian Australia shows individuals at the party shouting “Allahu Akbar” and “Allahu Akbar boom”. Later, voices can be heard chanting “Allahu Akbar” in unison, followed by laughter, and a call of “Hezbollah”, again followed by laughter. However, the individuals who shouted these words cannot be seen in the footage.
It is understood that there were at least nine men and women at the party, and the Muslim man was uncertain if the property owner was among those shouting. He reported the incident to NSW Police on January 15 and took part in an interview at Nepean police station on February 2.
In his interview, the man claimed that he “was asking the party guests to take it easy as they were flooding my place, but they chose to racially insult us because we are Muslims.”
According to documents seen by Guardian Australia, a police inspector who handled the complaint found that the chanting was not directed at the Muslim man. The inspector explained that the behavior heard was not intended to target him and was instead banter between friends at a private Christmas party.
The inspector reassured the man that the evidence gathered did not support any malicious intent or potential threat to his safety. Despite this, the man requested that the matter be escalated, but a police “regional office” agreed with the original investigator’s findings.
NSW Police told Guardian Australia that the matter is under review following further representations made by the complainant, but declined to comment further during the review process.
The Muslim man expressed his concerns that the shouting made him and his family feel unsafe, questioning whether they could trust the police. He raised concerns that the words used could be interpreted as threatening or implying that he was a suicide bomber.
It is noted that there is a history of disputes between the neighbors. The complainant had previously filed a claim of private nuisance against the neighboring property’s former owners due to water leakage. In this case, the dispute remains unresolved after the current owners moved in.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/mar/16/nsw-police-off-duty-officers-allahu-akbar-video-footage-muslim-neighbour-banter-glenmore-park-ntwnfb
