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A young man told police he was disgusted that the media ‘twisted’ a photo of him to make it look like he displayed a Nazi salute at a major football grand final, a court has been told.
Nikola Marko Gasparovic, Dominik Sieben and Marijan Lisica separately attended the highly-charged Australia Cup final between Sydney United 58 and Macarthur on October 1, 2022.
Parramatta Local Court on Monday was told the men are all of Croatian background and are keen supporters of Sydney United.
The men are fighting one charge each of knowingly displaying by public act a Nazi symbol without a reasonable excuse at a hearing before Magistrate Joy Boulas, which was played body-worn footage showed an interview with Mr Sieben months after the alleged incident.
Dominik Sieben (circled, above) is accused of performing a Nazi salute, but he claims he was just chanting while drinking a beer
Police approached Mr Sieben at his Sydney address in February 2023 – four months after the incident – to question him.
The 25-year-old, who described himself as a videographer, can be seen standing at his front door wearing a grey Tommy Hilfiger jumper next to his mother.
After being introduced to Detective Sergeant Aaron Taylor, Mr Sieben tells police he has a ‘long story’ for them.
‘Long story short I went to lawyers … it was disgusting, the whole thing, everything that was accused of me,’ Mr Sieben told police.
The 25-year-old told police he had a beer in one hand and was attempting to cheer on his team with his other arm.
‘Everyone was chanting … the media grabbed my photo and twisted the entire thing and made it look like someone I’m not,’ he said.
‘It had nothing to do with the Hitler crap … any of that crap … it was blown out of proportion so much.’
Mr Sieben’s mother was seen on the footage filming the police with her iPhone before she was warned she had to ask permission.
Police launched an investigation after a highly-charged Australia Cup final between Sydney United 58 and Macarthur FC last October (pictured, fans at the match)
He showed Taylor footage of other fans doing the chant in the crowd, explaining he couldn’t use two arms because he was holding a beer.
In the footage, Mr Sieben explained a cameraman panned to him from a ‘low angle’.
‘I think that honestly… (the media) twisted the entire thing,’ he said.
His mother interjected the police interview to describe the media as ‘nuts’, saying she would ‘love’ to have the reporters responsible ‘lose’ their jobs.
Mr Sieben told police he had ‘eight to nine’ Jewish friends.
‘Two or three of them I see on a regular basis,’ he said in the footage.
‘When they saw it they literally laughed.’
The three men are completely unknown to each other, with the court earlier told they have been charged under ‘novel’ NSW laws.
Followers of the semi-professional club were widely condemned for their actions following the match, leading to an investigation by NSW Police with detectives poring over hours of broadcast footage and CCTV.
The court was told Mr Gasparovic, 46, and Mr Lisica, 45 sang a chant associated with a Croatian far-right movement.
The legal action against Sieben and two other men – none of whom know each other – is the first high-profile case brought under an anti-Nazi law introduced in NSW in 2022 (pictured, fans at the 2022 Australia Cup final
A police prosecutor told the court Mr Lisica wore army camouflage, while Mr Gasparovic carried a ‘World War II era Nazi’ flag.
Meanwhile, the court was told Mr Sieben, 25, wore a red and white jersey, while he had the Croatian flag hanging like a cape around his neck.
All three men were interviewed before they were charged with knowingly displaying by public act a Nazi symbol without a reasonable excuse.
Police prosecutor Jarrod Imlay told the court it was a ‘novel’ piece of legislation introduced in 2022.
It is the first-high profile case in which a person has been charged with the offence.
Anyone found guilty of the offence of displaying a Nazi symbol without an excuse faces a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment and/or an $11,000 fine.
The prosecutor told the court the key issue at the hearing will be whether the salute constitutes a Nazi symbol, as it is not defined in the act.
‘It will be a matter for your honour to determine beyond a reasonable doubt whether the actions by the accused are a Nazi symbol,’ he said.
Ms Boulos will have to determine whether the elements of the charge have been satisfied to a reasonable doubt, and whether the men ‘knowingly’ conducted themselves in a particular way.
The hearing continues before Magistrate Boulos.
