A man has described his fear coming face to face with an alleged group of neo-Nazis on a Victorian mountain.
Thomas Sewell and Jacob Hersant were allegedly among a group who confronted several hikers in the Cathedral Ranges state park, northeast of Melbourne, in May this year.
Prosecutors say both men are leaders of neo-Nazi organisations, with Sewell tied to the European Australian Movement and Hersant to the National Socialist Movement.
Sewell, 28, and Hersant, 22, are facing a committal hearing in Melbourne Magistrates Court over allegations they robbed and assaulted the hikers.
It’s alleged Sewell and Hersant were among a group of about 20 alleged neo-Nazi group members in the Sugarloaf Peak area on May 8 this year.
The hikers, who cannot be identified because of concerns for their safety, speculated that the group was “probably the Nazis” who had featured in news reports about groups camping in the Grampians over Australia Day.
During their hike they came across stickers with the words “Australia for the white man” on them.
Both groups ended up in the car park at the same time, when one of the hikers took out his phone and began recording them.
Read the article by Karen Sweeney in The North-West Star.