WATCH: Police VIOLENTLY ARREST Rebel security at Freedom Day protest

“Grab this fella!”

That’s what the commanding officer of the Victoria Police shouted at his shock troops. And nine of them did grab him.

And throw him to the ground.

And punch him.

And knee him.

And put handcuffs on him so tightly that an hour later, his wrists were still bright red.

That “fella” that they grabbed is Daniel, my bodyguard. I don’t talk much about him, but he’s always there with me, watching my back when I work in case Antifa or someone else tries to attack me.

But what if the violent attack doesn’t come from criminals — what if it comes from out-of-control police?

Daniel is a licensed, insured, professional bodyguard who knows that the best way to win a fight is to never get in one. He keeps me out of trouble. 99% of the time, viewers never even know he’s there. In fact, all the TV crews covering yesterday’s major protests in Melbourne had bodyguards with them.

But the police only attacked mine.

As you can see in the video, I was walking away from police, and Daniel was behind me, following me, walking away from police, too. He wasn’t a protester; he was my quiet shadow.

The cops knew that. Which is precisely why they attacked him, slammed him to the floor, beat him up and took him to the police station — releasing him with the threat of a $1,817 fine.

The police knew exactly who I was and exactly who Daniel was. When they grabbed Daniel, I objected firmly but politely — so they started to threaten me, too.

I immediately called our lawyer, Madeleine Smith, to ask for legal advice. I tried to get police to talk to her, but they refused. When I asked police where they were taking Daniel, Inspector Jamie Templeton suggested I’d be arrested, too. You can hear him telling the other cops,

“Avi is starting to become a bit more problematic. So we might need to look at what Avi’s role is here in the moment.”

Really? My role is that of a reporter, covering the news — just like a dozen other reporters there that day, covering the news, each with their bodyguards, too.

The fact that Inspector Templeton knew my name shows he knew exactly who Daniel was. And his brazen suggestion that if I dared to keep asking about their misconduct, I’d be next, shows that he’s actually the lawless one.

As you can see at the end of the video, Daniel isn’t deterred — and neither am I. We’ll continue to honestly and independently cover the news in Australia, no matter what Dan Andrews’ bullies say.

And there’s simply no way we’re going to let Daniel pay that $1,817 ticket by himself. But we’re not going to pay it for him, either. We’re going to fight it for him — all the way to the High Court if necessary.

If you are appalled by the misconduct of the Victoria Police, and the transparent targeting of my crew and me, please join with me at www.FightTheFines.com.au to help us cover the legal costs of fighting Daniel’s fine. 

They’ve tried to hassle me, threaten me, tire me out and scare me, but it hasn’t worked so far. So now they’re targeting my team.

No way.

I’m going to fight for Daniel as hard as I fight for myself. If you can help me, please click here, and chip in a few dollars to help cover the costs of our excellent lawyers.