Canberra man charged with alleged assault, fraud following Sydney airport incident

Diing Garang was prevented from boarding his Sydney to Canberra flight after his ticket was allegedly bought with stolen credit card details. Photo: Sydney Airport Facebook.

A 19-year-old Canberra man has been granted conditional bail following an incident at Sydney Airport, where a passenger was allegedly assaulted and a staff member threatened.

Diing Garang has been banned from entering Sydney Airport’s domestic terminal and must stay at a Sydney address under the bail conditions, after he was arrested by AFP officers in a domestic departure lounge on Wednesday, 12 April.

He was blocked from his flight to Canberra after his ticket was allegedly bought using stolen credit card details.

This had triggered the card’s cancellation after the airline and bank flagged suspected fraudulent activity.

It’s alleged Mr Garang attempted to assault a staff member when he was prevented from boarding the flight, before he was accused of assaulting a passenger who intervened.

He was taken to Mascot Police Station where he was charged with two counts of common assault and one count of obtaining financial advantage by deception.

The maximum penalty for these offences is two and 10 years, respectively.

When speaking about the alleged incident, AFP Sydney Airport Police Commander Morgen Blunden said officers would not tolerate violent behaviour at airports.

“The AFP works very hard to ensure our airports are a safe environment for travellers and staff,” he said.

“The AFP has zero tolerance for violence and will prosecute people to the full extent of the law if they pose a threat to people’s safety.”

Mr Garang is next scheduled to front Sydney Downing Centre Court on 21 April.