#AceNewsServices UPDATE: AUSTRALIA:Dec.15 – Sheik Man Haron Monis, an Islamic ‘spiritual healer’ who is facing charges of sexual assault and being an accessory to murder, has been identified as the man who has taken civilians hostage in a Sydney café, according to local media citing police sources.
“There’s no operational reason for that name to be held back by us now,” an anonymous police source told Reuters.
The Iranian-born 50-year-old fled to Australia in 1996, but came to prominence after 2007, when he began sending “hate mail” to families of soldiers, who died while fighting in Iraq.
Despite claiming to be a peace advocate, and even chaining himself to a courthouse, Monis was sentenced to 300 hours of community service last year.
#Sydney hostage-taker named as #Iran-born cleric Man Haron Monis. Reportedly 50 charges of sexual assault to his name pic.twitter.com/tGxoDRJWpQ
— Camilla Schick (@CamJourno) December 15, 2014
Since then, his charge sheet has included much graver offences.
In December last year, Monis was accused of helping his current partner, Amirah Droudis, to murder his ex-wife, Noleen Hayson Pal. The woman had been stabbed several times and set alight in a Sydney apartment in April 2013.

A hostage runs towards a police officer outside Lindt cafe, where other hostages are being held, in Martin Place in central Sydney December 15, 2014. (Reuters/Jason Reed)
Monis had been locked in a custody battle with Pal, and prosecutors say he staged a heart attack, car accident and a robbery to create an alibi on the day of the murder.
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In April this year, Monis, who was on bail, was re-arrested after multiple reports of sexual abuse emerged.
Between 2000 and 2002, Monis styled himself as an “expert in astrology, numerology, meditation and black magic.” More than 40 women have alleged that he used this as an opportunity to sexually assault vulnerable clients, who came to him for help.

Hostages run past a police officer (C) near Lindt Cafe in Martin Place in central Sydney December 16, 2014. (Reuters/Jason Reed)