Man Haron Monis (; born Mohammed Hassan Manteghi Borujerdi; 19 May 1964 – 16 December 2014) was an Iranian-born refugee and Australian citizen who took hostages in a siege at the Lindt Chocolate Café at Martin Place, Sydney on 15 December 2014, lasting for 16 hours, until the early hours of the following morning. The siege resulted in the death of Monis and two hostages.
While Monis had a warrant out for his arrest in Iran, he sought political asylum in Australia in 1996, which was granted in 2001. Monis variously promoted himself as an Iranian intelligence official, a political activist, a spiritual healer and expert in black magic, an outlaw bikie and a Muslim cleric. He told a psychiatrist who diagnosed him with schizophrenia that he had to change his name for "security reasons," variously calling himself "Michael Hayson Mavros", "Sheikh Haron", and "Ayatollah Mohammed Manteghi Boroujerdi".
Monis ran a "spiritual healing" business, telling some women that they needed to submit to sexual molestation to receive treatment. In 2014, Monis was charged with being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife, as well as over 40 counts of sexual assault. At the time of his death, he had recently converted from Shia Islam to Sunni Islam, and attended Islamist rallies promoting conspiracy theories about Australian security agencies. While on bail, and facing a likely lengthy imprisonment, he declared allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Life in Iran Monis was born in Borujerd, Iran on 19 May 1964. He published a book of poetry, Inside and Out or Daroon va Boroon (), in 1996 in Iran. It did not sell well, which disappointed Monis. In the 1990s, Monis ran a company called Salehan-ë Amal (), which he used to buy discounted tyres from the Iranian government and re-sell them on the black market. He also ran a charity scam to avoid paying tax.
In 2001, using the pseudonym Ayatollah Manteghi Boroujerdi, he claimed in an interview with ABC Radio National's The Religion Report that he had been involved with the Iranian ministry of intelligence and security, and that his criticism of the regime and secret information he possessed had resulted in his persecution as well as the detention of his wife and children. During an ABC Radio interview, he claimed that his family's detention was a result of views the Iranian government believed to be "dangerously liberal". David Ruteledge, the journalist who interviewed him, described this as "a little bit dramatic."
Australia granted his request for political asylum that year. He claimed that his request for asylum followed the detention of his wife and children by Iranian authorities after he espoused liberal views on Islam. According to London-based Persian TV channel Manoto 1, he had fled Iran after taking US$200,000 of his customers' money in his tourism agency. According to Iran's official news agency, he was under investigation by Interpol and Iranian police at the time he was granted asylum, and Australian police did not extradite him despite several requests. Some commentators have expressed concern regarding this immigration and citizenship process.
Esmaeil Ahmadi-Moghaddam, Iran's chief of police, told reporters that Monis had "a dark and long history of violent crime and fraud" in Iran and had run a travel agency in 1996, before fleeing to Malaysia and then Australia. "It lasted 4 years to collect evidence on Manteghi [Monis]'s identification documents and we reported this to the Australian police but since Australia has no extradition treaty with Iran, they didn't extradite him to Iran". He was protected from extradition by his refugee status.
Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency states that he was "under prosecution by the Interpol" and Iran provided information to the Australian government about his criminal record, mental and spiritual status. Despite this, he was granted asylum in Australia. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham publicly questioned the decisions made by the Australian government after several discussions in which Monis's criminal status in Iran was made "completely clear".
Life in Australia In 1996 Monis migrated to Australia as a refugee seeking political asylum. He used a one-month business visa to gain entry to the country. He applied for a protection visa when his business visa expired, and was granted a bridging visa while the protection visa application was assessed.
From 1997 to 2000, Monis held a security guard licence, which would have let him carry a pistol between March and June 1997.
In November 2000, he chained himself to a pole at Parliament House, Sydney, and went on a one-day hunger strike to draw attention to his cause.
He began to sexually assault women while passing himself off as a spiritual healer named 'Marcus' in the early 2000s.
On 16 September 2002, Monis changed his name to Michael Hayson Mavros. While he was known as Mavros, he seemed to be 'embracing a secular life'.
He gained Australian citizenship in 2004. On 21 September 2006, he changed his name to Man Haron Monis.Martin Place Siege Review (p. 72) PDF www.dpmc.gov.au Monis was investigated by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation four times, and there were more than 40 calls to ASIO's National Security Hotline. The family of his partner called the National Security Hotline in 2010 and were advised Monis "wasn't a threat". Monis had been on the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation's watch-list in 2008 and 2009, but was dropped off the list for reasons that were not specified.
In 2009, in Granville, NSW, Monis gave a lecture calling for an Islamic society and taunting foreign governments saying, "your intelligence service is not working properly."
Monis lived in a flat with a housemate for six months in 1998. Monis said he was a senior member of the clergy in Iran, always locked his bedroom door, even when he went to the bathroom, and told his housemate not to bring friends over and not to answer the door if anyone knocked. Monis said that he was in "financial hardship" and borrowed $9,000, which were never repaid.
Spouses In 2003, Monis dated Amanda Morsy for about six months, telling her he was Romanian, giving her gold necklaces and driving her to dates in a Mercedes, convertible Peugeot and a Jeep. Monis was unable to be contacted after 8 pm, claiming he was busy with his "spiritual consultation" business. Morsy described him as "secretive", "very reserved" and "formal" and wanting to "fit in". He broke the relationship off after her family expressed reservations about his personality.
In 2003, Monis married a woman who was a client of his "black magic" business. However, he always kept his blinds closed, and told people at a Sydney mosque that he had a wife in Iran.
In July 2011, Monis was charged at a St Mary's police station for intimidation of his ex-wife, following a confrontation in a McDonald's car park in Green Valley. His ex-wife claimed Monis had threatened to shoot her and told her that he held a gun licence.
In 2010, the family of his girlfriend, Amirah Droudis, reported Monis to the National Security Hotline because they found his behaviour strange. He was secretive with the family and always refused to have his photo taken even at Christmas. He gave them the appearance of having money and being "very generous" but vague about where he worked. They described him as "rarely forthcoming with any direct or detailed answers."
Social worker Sylvia Martin talked with Monis during a meeting with his former wife in 2012. She described Monis as prone to "grandiosity" and a "hero in his own story" describing him as "capable of narcissism and also capable of manipulation." His ex-wife said that Monis had "intimidated, duped and emotionally manipulated her" and that around 2007 he "became more strict" and told her to wear a veil, and restricted her from "singing and dancing" allegedly telling her "I'm doing it for Islam ... I want to be a martyr".
Accessory to murder charge On 21 April 2013, Monis' ex-wife's body was found stabbed 17 times and alight in a Werrington apartment stairwell. Monis' girlfriend, Amirah Droudis, was formally charged with murder, and on 15 November 2013, Monis was charged by NSW Police with being an accessory before the fact and an accessory after the fact to the murder.
On 12 December 2013, Monis and Amirah appeared before Magistrate William Pierce at Penrith Local Court where they were granted bail.12 December 2013 court list Penrith Magistrate Court The magistrate said there were significant flaws in the Crown's case against the pair and that it was "a weak case". Prosecutor Brian Royce said Monis' claims that the Iranian Secret Police and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) were trying to frame him for the murder were fanciful. Magistrate Pierce said all theories needed to be examined.
On 22 January 2014, Monis appeared at Parramatta Local Court and, after informing magistrate Joan Baptie that he was representing himself, began discussing documents that he claimed were held by ASIO. He also claimed that ASIO was "conspiring against him" as they wanted him jailed. Magistrate Baptie told Monis that she had no power to order the release of documents held by ASIO and "advised him to stop talking because he would harm his defence". Monis staged a protest outside the court, following the adjournment of the case, "wearing chains and holding a sign claiming he has been tortured in custody". He was quoted as saying: "This is not a criminal case. This is a political case."
Claims of membership of Iranian Intelligence Monis told individuals in Australia, including his lawyers, that he had worked for the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security and had knowledge about Iran's clandestine operations, and that it was for this reason he fled Iran. However, an Iranian embassy official stated Monis' claim to have worked in intelligence and security in Iran was a lie.
Monis said he was the secretary of the Iranian intelligence department. After 9/11, Monis called ASIO saying he knew Iran was responsible and asked for a financial reward for the information. He also asked ASIO to pay him to work as an informant.
Allegations of fabricated cleric status Monis proclaimed himself to be a Shia cleric. In late 2007, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils head Ikebal Patel said no Islamic community leaders knew anything about Monis and believed he "could be a fake deliberately stirring up anti-Islamic sentiment".
On 28 January 2008, Australia's senior Shia leader and head of Supreme Islamic Shia Council of Australia, Kamal Mousselmani, told The Australian that Monis "was not a genuine Shia spiritual leader" and "there are no ayatollahs in Australia." He urged Federal government officials to investigate his identity. "From the way he writes his fatwas (or religious edicts), I don't think he is Shia Muslim", he added.
Psychiatric assessment In 2010 Monis was involuntarily hospitalised at Canterbury Hospital after displaying bizarre and erratic behaviour in a parking lot in Ashfield. A psychiatrist who assessed Monis said she believed he had chronic schizophrenia and needed to be on anti-psychotic medication. Monis stated that he had been forced to close his spiritual business, was $20,000 in debt, and had to change his name for "security reasons."