A notorious pro-Putin commentator who goes by the name of “Aussie Cossack” was a no-show to his own rally outside of the Russian consulate.
Simeon Boikov, 32, is seeking refuge inside of the consulate as he dodges a warrant for his arrest issued in January after he failed to appear in court.
He is accused of assaulting a 76-year-old man at a rally in support of Ukraine in December at Sydney’s Town Hall.
On Saturday, supporters of Boikov gathered outside of the Russian consulate for a so-called “freedom rally” which doubled as NSW election campaign launch for fellow conspiracy theorists Ricardo Bosi and Dave Graham.
Despite putting on a sausage sizzle and hundreds gathering with Russian flags and Z shirts, a pro-Russia war symbol, the man of the hour failed to show up.
The rally was promoted as being Boikov’s first public appearance since he holed up inside of the consulate.
Instead, the YouTuber appeared on his video stream of the event after being allegedly told police would “jump him” if he left the building.
Boikov instead addressed the crowd via a phone call.
“This war (in Ukraine) would have been over in one week if it wasn’t for the Americans, the Germans and NATO sending in their weapons and sending in their advisers. Their aim is not to win or lose the war,” he told the crowd.
“Their aim is to make as much money as possible.”
Supporters wished him a happy birthday via the live stream, which kept dropping in and out to Boikov’s frustration.
Mr Boikov has amassed nearly 230,000 followers across his social media accounts, which include YouTube, Telegram and Facebook.
The 32-year-old was a prominent personality in the anti-vaccine mandate protests in Canberra in 2022 and claims he is the leader of the Australian Cossacks – a group which promotes pro-Russian government sentiment.
Bosi, a former Australian Army Special Forces lieutenant colonel turned right-wing extremist, used the rally to launch his campaign for NSW upper house.
He thanked the Russians for fighting in Ukraine and told the crowd this was a “debt we will never be able to pay”.
The conspiracy theorist also claimed if he was not elected to the NSW upper house the “evidence will be so tough that the NSW electoral commission will be found guilty of electoral fraud”.
“It’s so obvious because we know that they do that. Do not vote early,” he claimed.
“They throw them out and replace it with boxes of ballots prefilled according to their desired result.”
Bosi also took aim at the Queensland Police for declaring the Train family’s fatal ambush attack on police at Wieambilla Australia’s first fundamentalist Christian terrorist attack.
“She had no idea what she was saying. She was desperate. Apparently Christians are terrorists now.
“We’ve had Islamic terrorists. Sorry that was mental illness. So we can’t find Islamic terrorists. But if you say the Lord’s Prayer and the word sovereign they now have to arrest you.”