Patrick Stevenson, a 20-year-old with learning disorders and suspected autism, has been detained in a Syrian prison for nearly seven months without a single visit from Australian officials, facing a murder charge that could result in execution. The former Gold Coast phone technician is accused of shooting Abdullah Glen Charles Burgess, 40, at least eight times with an AK-47 in the victim's home in Darkush on December 31.
Stevenson's legal team has raised grave concerns about his prospects of receiving a fair trial and his deteriorating mental health in Sarmada prison. No Australian official has visited him or attended his court hearings to verify his identity and assess his welfare. Australia's ability to provide consular assistance remains severely limited because it has no embassy or consulate in Syria.
A Vulnerable Young Man
Stevenson converted to Islam in his final year of high school in 2023 and became radicalized on the Gold Coast, according to his family. He has ADHD, learning disorders, and suspected autism spectrum disorder. By last year, he was sharing speeches online by Anwar al-Awlaki, the US-born Al Qaeda cleric killed in a drone strike in Yemen in 2011.
He left the Gold Coast on a flight to Bali on October 10 and later travelled to Syria, where he moved to Idlib province, the country's former rebel stronghold in the north-west. People who knew both men said Burgess took Stevenson under his wing late last year and that they became close before the killing.
Death Penalty Looms
If convicted, Stevenson could face the death penalty under Syrian law. He could be spared execution only if Burgess's widow, Amatullah Laurie Duniam, grants him forgiveness under Syria's legal system or accepts blood money, known as diya, from Stevenson's family. Burgess's family, including Duniam, declined to speak to the ABC.
Burgess was living in Syria with his Australian wife and children after leaving their home in northern New South Wales and spending several months travelling through Afghanistan. According to Syrian authorities, Burgess's wife and their daughters were in another room when he was shot but weren't physically injured.
Lack of Oversight and Access
DFAT told Stevenson's family after his arrest that Syrian authorities initially treated the shooting as accidental. A week later, DFAT advised the family by email that Syria's "Intelligence Bureau is investigating Mr Stevenson's possible affiliation with ISIS." That terrorism investigation ended in February when authorities referred the case to civilian criminal courts.
Correspondence seen by the ABC shows DFAT repeatedly told Stevenson's family that it couldn't obtain information from Syrian authorities and had no access to the country's detention facilities. Australian authorities have also been unable to independently monitor the investigation into Burgess's death.
Stevenson's father, Clay Stevenson, travelled to Syria last week and visited his son in prison for the first time. He also attended his son's court hearing on Sunday to submit Australian medical records, including a psychiatric report documenting Patrick's ADHD and learning disorders, as well as suspected autism spectrum disorder.
Legal Process Could Take a Year
Syrian legal sources said it could take up to a year for the court to reach a verdict. Under Syrian law, a death sentence imposed by an ordinary criminal court must be reviewed by the Court of Cassation, considered by a special clemency committee and approved by the president before it can be carried out.
DFAT told the ABC it was providing consular assistance to Burgess's and Stevenson's families but was unable to comment further because of privacy obligations. The department said, "We send our deepest condolences to [Mr Burgess's] family at this difficult time."
Questions About Radicalization
The case raises questions about whether Syria could again become a destination for radicalized Australians as it emerges from a 14-year civil war that drew thousands of foreign fighters to terrorist groups including IS. A nearby village mayor in Idlib province, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Darkush, near the Turkish border, had become a stronghold for Australian former fighters and Islamists.
Idlib was governed for years by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, before the group led the offensive that toppled dictator Bashar al-Assad. HTS formally dissolved in January 2025. The former Al Qaeda affiliate, previously known as Jabhat al-Nusra, remains a designated terrorist organisation in Australia. The Syrian government has shown little engagement over the case, and Australian sanctions remain in place against the militant group from which Syria's new leadership emerged.
Why This Matters:
This case exposes the profound vulnerability of Australians detained in countries where the government has no diplomatic presence or ability to monitor legal proceedings. A young man with documented mental disabilities faces potential execution without independent verification of the investigation, his treatment, or whether he can meaningfully participate in his own defence. The absence of any Australian official presence at his hearings or in the prison where his mental health is reportedly deteriorating raises urgent questions about the government's duty of care to its citizens, regardless of the allegations they face. It also highlights how radicalization can ensnare vulnerable young people with cognitive disabilities, and whether Australia is doing enough to prevent such trajectories. The potential for a death sentence in a legal system Australia cannot monitor underscores the human rights implications when consular protections collapse entirely.