The teenager appeared before Parramatta Local Court on Thursday charged with doing an act in preparation for a terrorist attack,which carries a maximum of life in prison.
The magistrate told the court Patten’s alleged crime carried “overtones of mental health” issues.
Patten sat silently behind a correctives officer,dressed in a T-shirt and shorts and no shoes,and made no application for release to bail.
Despite his silence,a 205-page manifesto allegedly authored by Patten outlined plans to “attack and try to kill every inmate or prison staff I see” if he survived long enough to be arrested.
The manifesto emerged in encrypted neo-Nazi chats shortly before the incident in Newcastle.
Patten’s brother,William Patten,told9News he was “deeply concerned” for his brother’s welfare.
“I am deeply saddened by his[alleged] actions and choices,I do not understand his reasons,” Patten said.
Patten said his brother had “expressed sorrow” for his alleged behaviour.
“I still love him as a brother,but I cannot forgive the[alleged] actions.”
Patten’s suspected manifesto and online activities,shared with theHerald by extremism investigators from The White Rose Society,revealed the teenager had previously fantasised about murder and had described wanting to carry out a range of terrorist attacks in Newcastle and Sydney,inspired by Christchurch shooter Brenton Tarrant.
The manifesto describes a car attack on New Year’s Eve revellers in Sydney and a shooting.
The author copied the format from Tarrant’s own manifesto,beginning with lengthy and often incoherent rants that range from antisemitic to anti-LGBT,anti-immigrant,anti-feminist and profoundly anti-left-wing politics.
He described himself firmly as “right wing” and a Liberal voter “at odds” with the current party.
Like Tarrant,the manifesto ends with a Q&A in which Patten,the alleged author,described bringing a knife to school to behead his school counsellor,and then his teacher.
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Patten allegedly wrote in the manifesto he had plans to shoot his school or bomb it,killing dozens of people.
“The scenes in my mind also made it seem poetic to be killed by the police after killing a bunch of people,” he allegedly wrote.
In the end the author settled on a plot to behead a Labor leader – though he wondered aloud if he had the capacity to do it or whether it would just “hurt my head”.
Like his idol Tarrant,who killed 51 in the Christchurch shooting,Patten allegedly livestreamed the Newcastle incident on helmet camera.
Among those following and interacting with Patten’s accounts were neo-Nazis and members of the involuntary celibate “incel” community,who blame women for not choosing them as sexual partners.
A member of the encrypted chat wished him luck but turned to mockery once Patten surrendered.
“Autisticly walking around with a knife and get arrest without fight,” they wrote,sharing a clip of Patten’s arrest on Nine News.
Patten will remain in custody until August 21.