A far-right extremist who hailed the Christchurch mass murderer as a "saint" online will be sentenced on a terrorism-related charge later this month, a court has heard.
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Tyler Jakovac, 20, pleaded guilty in March to advocating the commission of a terrorism act or offence in relation to extreme far-right posts online.
The offence carries a maximum penalty of five years behind bars.
He has been in custody since his arrest in Albury in December 2020.
On Tuesday, a sentence hearing in Parramatta District Court was told one of the "high points" of the case against Jakovac was his description of Christchurch mosques terrorist Brenton Tarrant.
"It's very, very concerning it seems to me," Judge Mark Buscombe told the court.
"It's thoroughly objectionable," Jakovac's barrister, Tom Quilter, said.
Mr Quilter argued a "disconnect" existed between Jakovac online and in real life where the court was told he did not even hold a learner driver's licence and worked alongside Indians without issue .
"All he's willing to do is send some things online," Mr Quilter said.
He urged the judge to spare Jakovac jail time, citing his autism spectrum disorder, difficult upbringing, good prospects of rehabilitation, and that he was 18 years old at the time of the offence.
Mr Quilter also pointed to Jakovac's lengthy time behind bars bail-refused, including many months at Goulburn jail, housed alongside terrorism offenders.
"When a would-be offender looks at the punishment as a whole ... general deterrence does not require a jail term to be imposed," the barrister submitted.
Crown prosecutor Rob Ranken urged a prison term for "mid-range" offending, but conceded Jakovac's views appeared to have "softened" since his arrest.
The court was told that Jakovac as a youth became fixated with Russian and Slavic culture and held racist views against Jews and other minorities, before creating a channel on messaging service Telegram when he was 17.
"The evidence would suggest there has been a developing renunciation of these racist views," Mr Ranken told the court.
But he cautioned: "There does remain a risk that he may fall back into holding those views".
Earlier, Jakovac's mother, Jane Lovelock, testified that her son was a "family kid" who did not socialise much and worked up to 60 hours per week as a chef.
Ms Lovelock said she had no idea about her son's online activities and only became aware of his extreme views when he was arrested.
She said he never expressed extreme views to her and was "loved" by his co-workers, some of whom were Indian.
"They were so shocked when this happened," she said.
Jakovac sat in the dock with his head in his hands throughout the hearing.
Judge Buscombe adjourned the matter to July 25 for sentence.
Australian Associated Press
