Gold Coast man sentenced after threatening Australia’s prime minister and treasurer

Investigators from the a journalist at one outlet Intelligence team linked three hostile voicemail messages left on Treasurer Jim Chalmers’s electorate office answering service to Scott Evans, a 57-year-old resident of Coomera on the Gold Coast. A search of his home on July 16 uncovered the threatening recordings on his phone, leading to a charge of threatening to cause harm to a public official, which can carry a maximum two-year sentence.

Evans entered a guilty plea in Southport Magistrates Court, where the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution’s legal officer described the messages as violent, including statements about punching the prime minister. Although his defense highlighted his PTSD and a cancelled psychologist appointment as context, the magistrate noted the repeated nature of the calls and dismissed the impulsive-act argument. Evans was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment but will serve the term under an 18-month good-behaviour order, reflecting the court’s view that the threats warranted a custodial response.