Neo-Nazi who rallied outside parliament taken into Villawood detention centre

A neo-Nazi who took part in an anti-Jewish protest outside NSW Parliament has been taken into immigration detention ahead of his looming deportation back to his native South Africa.

At the same time, Australia Post says it is investigating whether one of its employees – a regional delivery manager – was among the 60-odd members of the National Socialist Network involved in the rally.

Matthew Gruter, a civil engineer and senior member of the National Socialist Network, had his visa cancelled by the Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Monday after the Herald revealed the South African native was among the black-clad neo-Nazis who shouted antisemitic slogans at the rally on Saturday, November 8.

Gruter was active on social media accounts linked to the extreme-right group in the early hours of Tuesday morning. In a post written after midnight, Gruter said he would “exhaust all legal options” to avoid returning to his home country.

In a statement published by an NSN-affiliated website, Gruter said Australian Border Force had come to his home early on Tuesday morning and that he had been taken to Villawood detention centre. He said the visa had been cancelled on character grounds.

Burke on Tuesday said he expected Gruter would leave the country “very soon”.

“Most people, once they’re in immigration detention, leave pretty quickly,” he said.

Burke, who in justifying the visa cancellation likened Gruter to an unwelcome house guest, said the neo-Nazis who rallied outside parliament “hate modern Australia”.

“Multicultural Australia and modern Australia are the same thing,” he said.

“Someone who gets involved in neo-Nazism in Australia shouldn’t pretend they’re somehow patriotic. They hate modern Australia.

“My priority is that Australians feel at home, feel safe, that they are safe in Australia. Anyone who wants to stand in the way of that can find the full force of the law coming down on them.”

Burke said the government was “very confident of our position”, noting there were limited avenues to appeal once a minister ordered a visa to be revoked.

Gruter was employed as an engineer in Sydney by multinational firm Aurecon. The company has not responded to multiple requests for comment. He had been in Australia for about three years on a visa.

A public fundraising page set up for Gruter has raised $16,000. “This unjust decision by Tony Burke may be unable to be challenged and the least we can all do is take away from the financial burden on him and the distressing move for him and his young family,” the text on the page said.

Several of the donors’ usernames and messages contained Nazi allusions.

The Herald identified Gruter along with other members of the NSN, after the rally on November 8. One, Alex Volvach, is a Russian-educated contractor with a police-issued licence to install and maintain security devices.

Australia Post said it was investigating the potential involvement of one of its employees “as a priority”.

“Australia Post is investigating a team member’s attendance at a rally in Sydney and will take the appropriate level of action once concluded,” a spokeswoman said.

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