SYDNEY, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Melbourne man has been arrested for allegedly planning a terrorist attack on New Year's Eve celebrations.
Victoria Police confirmed on Tuesday that the 20-year-old man from Werribee, 30 km southwest of Melbourne, was taken into custody by Special Operations Group (SOG) officers on Monday afternoon.
Shane Patton, Victoria police deputy commissioner, confirmed the man was an Australian-born Muslim with Somalian parents.
Patton said police believe the man was trying to acquire a firearm to "shoot and kill as many people as he could" around Federation Square in Melbourne's Central Business District (CBD) during New Year's celebrations.
"This is a person who expressed an intention to try and kill as many people as he could through shooting them in Federation Square area on New Year's Eve," Patton told reporters on Tuesday.
"It is a tremendous concern to us that (during) festive season, when people are out enjoying themselves, that there is a potential plot to commit a terrorist act. That is a huge issue for us but that is why we put the resources in."
Police do not expect to make any further arrests relating to the plot, alleging the man was operating alone.
Patton confirmed that the man was in possession of an al-Qaeda guidebook on how to carry out terrorist attacks.
"He is associated with other persons in the Victorian extremists community... it is a very small community of extremists," he said.
Police were interviewing the man on Tuesday morning with charges expected to follow in the afternoon.
