Monday, 19 October 2026

Updated 16m agoSaved

Next edition

3:00

Headlines

Top StoriesBeau Lamarre-Condon told officer friend ‘I love you’ and ‘not everything in the news is true’ after arrest, court told
World NewsTrump and Zelensky escalate feud as Ukraine war strains alliance
PoliticsBurnham urged to launch inquiry into unequal health impacts of air pollution
IrelandOver 7,000 homes restored across Ireland this year with Donegal leading the way
RedditAbdul El-Sayed Shuts Down 'Muslim Brotherhood' Heckler With Lesson On The Constitution
Business & FinanceThe housing crisis is now global. It shows just how undemocratic our nations have become | Leilani Farha
Crypto & BitcoinDollar firmer, euro weakens as French protests turn violent
Real EstateAll Things Considered
Startups & VCThe investors with the biggest jumps in the Sifted AI 100
TechnologyAnthropic says it will commit small percentage of stock to ‘public benefit’ fund
SIIn Netflix’s ‘East of Eden,’ Florence Pugh’s Cathy Ames Is Recognizably Human
CybersecurityFlorida Attorney General James Uthmeier secures state arrest warrant for Raúl Castro
GamingThe Best 'Peanuts' Great Pumpkin Comic Strip Came Out 2 Years Before the Famous TV Special
YouTube & CreatorsOpinion | There Is a Zionism That Needs the Support of Progressives
ScienceNFC East nearing second straight winless week as Packers beat struggling Cowboys on 'Sunday Night Football'
SpaceNFC East nearing second straight winless week as Packers beat struggling Cowboys on 'Sunday Night Football'
HealthWhat statins really do to your body
Climate & EnergyPlanet Earth and Brazil’s Election
EntertainmentMiranda Kerr shares the strict diet that keeps her glowing: 'I miss eggs'
Film & TVOther Desert Cities Has Dried Up and Blown Away
MusicRaye forced to take ‘absurd’ measures to stop AI ticket touts
BooksHeroes, zeros from Jets’ loss to Patriots: Drake Maye was even better than his gaudy stat line
SportsHow one rule change is altering the face of one-day cricket
TravelKlook Withdraws U.S. IPO, Citing Market Conditions
Food & DrinkSpaghetti with lentils, and aubergine veggie-balls: Jacob Kenedy’s autumn pasta recipes

Sydney man charged over alleged mass shooting threat to chatbot

Australian authorities arrested a 29-year-old man after Interpol flagged online interactions in which he allegedly threatened a mass shooting at a Sydney childcare centre.

FTMQ News, written by our newsroom19 October 2026 at 05:500 views

Share

Picture: Daily Mail

A 29-year-old man from Sydney, Australia, has been charged after allegedly threatening to carry out a mass shooting at a childcare facility during an interaction with an artificial intelligence chatbot. The Daily Mail reported that David Lan Thackray was arrested on Sunday morning after Interpol flagged his conversations with the chatbot Claude. [1]

According to the Daily Mail, Thackray allegedly told the artificial intelligence platform that he planned to shoot several children at a childcare centre located near his home in Hurstville. Following the arrest, he was charged with one count of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend. [1]

Sydney serves as the financial hub of Australia and was founded as a British settlement at Sydney Cove in 1788. The city generated a gross regional product of 581.65 billion Australian dollars in the 2024 to 2025 financial year. [3]

The incident follows previous security concerns in the city. On 14 December 2025, an antisemitic and Islamic State inspired attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney resulted in 15 deaths during a Hanukkah celebration. [2]

Share

In short

David Lan Thackray was arrested after allegedly making shooting threats to the AI chatbot Claude.
Interpol flagged the online conversation to authorities before the arrest on Sunday morning.
The suspect allegedly targeted a childcare centre located near his Hurstville home.
Thackray faces one charge of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend.

Sources

Every paragraph above points to the numbered items it rests on. Read the originals here.

[1]Sydney man allegedly threatens to carry out mass shooting at childcare centre during conversation with AI chatbotDaily Mail, 1h ago (the report this story comes from)

Background

[2]Bondi Beach shooting on Wikipedia
[3]Sydney on Grokipedia
[4]Illinois man arrested over alleged mass shooting plot FTMQ News, 3d ago
[5]Police officer hospitalised after being shot in Nottingham city centre FTMQ News, 21h ago

Our newsroom writes these reports with the help of software, from the 5 sources listed and nothing else, and checks them against those sources. Facts can still be wrong or move on; the originals are the record. Spotted a mistake? Write to daniel@monsterkong.com.

Earlier reports of ours on the same people and subjects.

Teenager arrested after alleged robbery at Sydney bottle shopTop Stories, 7d ago
Man charged after Sydney suburb lockdown following armed incidentTop Stories, 8h ago
Illinois man arrested over alleged mass shooting plotTop Stories, 3d ago
Real estate agent charged in alleged Chinese espionage plot in the USTop Stories, 11d ago
Man charged with murder after Sydney boy shot in SeptemberTop Stories, 5d ago

More in Top Stories

Get the day in one email

Reports like this one, the top news of the last 24 hours, every morning. Free, one email a day; readers can comment under every report.

By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. Unsubscribe any time.

Comments

Loading

Join the conversation

Comments are open to readers of our daily email: the top news of the last 24 hours, every morning, free. Sign up and the comment box opens.

Already on the list? Enter the same address and we will send a sign-in link.

By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. Unsubscribe any time.