Police are considering whether to bring further serious charges against Brendan Nugent, who is accused of attacking Helen Haines, as detectives investigate the motive and any possible links to the sovereign citizen conspiracy movement.
Nugent appeared in Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court and was remanded in custody without applying for bail. He is due to return to court in February.
Magistrate Allison Vaughan ordered that Nugent be assessed by a mental health professional as he began his first period behind bars.
Police are examining a trail of deleted social media posts which appears to document years of serious psychological struggle. Officers have warned of a potentially dangerous connection between extreme ideology and what they described as “mental health vulnerabilities”.
Police investigate alleged attack on Helen Haines
Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said detectives were still trying to establish what led to the “deliberate” attack and whether Nugent had any personal contact with Haines.
Investigators are also considering whether he had been waiting outside Haines’s Wangaratta office, police said.
Nugent’s appearance in court came as detectives continued to examine his possible connections to the sovereign citizen movement and whether those links played a role in the alleged attack.
He remained in custody after the hearing, with police not ruling out further serious charges.
