Monis had committed a number of “violent” and fraud-related offences before he fled the country “in disguise” in 1996, according to Iran’s chief of police, General Ismail Ahmadi Moghaddam. At the time, Monis went by the name of Mohammad Hassan Manteqi. He fled first to Malaysia in 1996 and then to Australia, General Moghaddam claimed. Monis applied for, and was in 2001 granted, refugee status in Australia.

Monis, 50, was shot dead when police stormed into the Lindt Chocolat Cafe just after 2am on Tuesday, more than 16 hours after he entered the cafe armed with a gun and held 17 customers and staff hostage. At the time, Monis was before the courts on two separate and serious matters: more than 40 sexual assault charges involving seven alleged victims and as an accessory to the murder of his former wife. The NSW government has called for an investigation into why Monis “slipped through the cracks” of the judicial system and was released from custody. General Moghaddam said Iranian authorities were prepared to work with Australian police to investigate his past. “Our position is clear in this regard; all countries should co-operate to avoid such issues if there is international organised crime today,” General Moghaddam said. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is being contacted for comment. After years of diplomatic isolation from the West, Shiite-dominated Iran and the Western world have found areas of agreement such as battling so-called Islamic State militants. Ongoing discussions about limits on Iran’s nuclear program have made Iran more sensitive about its image on the world stage. (st/kh)