Ahmed Rashid Nadir: NSW Police yet to speak to male nurse after anti-Semitic hospital video went viral

New South Wales’s top cop says “there will be further charges” from the ongoing investigation into an alleged anti-Semitic video involving two Sydney nurses.

About a fortnight ago, two NSW Health workers were filmed declaring they would not treat Israelis who presented at the Bankstown Hospital and would instead “kill them”.

The nurses made the anti-Semitic claims during a video call with popular Jewish influencer Max Viefer who then shared their conversation on social media.

The pair, dressed in NSW Health scrubs, were quickly identified as Ahmad ‘Rashad’ Nadir and Sarah Abu Lebdeh and sacked.

Strike Force Pearl detectives immediately launched an investigation and on Tuesday night, after receiving advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions, arrested Ms Abu Lebdeh at the Sutherland Police Station.

The 26-year-old was charged with three Commonwealth offences including threaten violence to group, use carriage service to threaten to kill and use carriage service to menace/harass/offend.

The Condell Park woman was granted conditional bail to appear at the Downing Centre Local Court on March 19.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said on Wednesday that Ms Abu Lebdeh was facing “three very very serious charges”.

“The individual will face court but in the meantime she is on very strict bail conditions, namely prohibiting her from going to a point of departure in Australia but more importantly, banned from using social media,” she said.

The police boss confirmed Mr Nadir, who had bragged about killing Israeli patients, was still under investigation.

“We will interview that individual at the right time,” she said during a press conference in Hobart on Wednesday.

“That’s out of my control (when police will interview him).”

Ms Webb indicated that she expects Mr Nadir will also be charged.

“Matters are ongoing and there will be further charges down the track and we will make further announcements about that,” she said.

Days after the online chatroom conversation went viral, paramedics were called to Mr Nadir’s Bankstown home due to a “concern for welfare” report and he was taken to hospital.

Ms Webb refused to comment on his current medical condition.

“I won’t go into that,” she said.

“I don’t want to jeopardise any of that, in terms of the investigation or any other element.”

Ms Webb said NSW Police had not encountered a case as “complex” as this before.

“Because we’re dealing with not only offending in our jurisdiction but it crosses global borders,” she said.

“And the person reporting — the social influencer if you like — is based in Israel. It took some time to get a comprehensive statement as well as the unedited video.

“When we did obtain that statement it was taken in Hebrew and we had to translate that into English to make it admissible into evidence in NSW.

“I don’t think I would have ever imagined that an investigation of that complexity across the other side of the world would be done in such a short time.”

Ms Webb said Mr Veifer, an Israeli social media personality, had been cooperative.

“Very cooperative but the complexity is obtaining the evidence in a form that makes it admissible in our courts and translate a statement that was in Hebrew into English,” she said.

Ms Abu Lebdeh is the 14th person to be arrested under Strike Force Pearl, which has now laid 76 charges.

“There are a number of separate incidents right across Sydney that have been joined under the banner of Strike Force Pearl that are still under investigation,” Ms Webb said.

“We have charged some people on the fringes, some people for carrying out acts, but we are investigating the option and possibility that someone — or that there are a number of individuals — who are orchestrating these activities so our investigations are focusing on that at this point in time.

“Possibly 100 police and investigators are working together on this matter.”