A man charged with threatening to kill after an online threat against Linwood Islamic Centre and Al Noor Mosque has appeared in court.
The 27-year-old, who has name suppression, was arrested after a member of the public tipped police off to a "credible" threat against the Muslim community posted on web forum 4chan.
He has been remanded in custody and will reappear on March 19.
It comes less than two weeks before the second anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks in which 51 people were murdered.
Chairperson of the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand Royal Commission committee Abdur Razzaq told The AM Show the police response was "gold standard" in terms of the arrest - but he wants to know if the internet was being monitored.
"Was our security intelligence service looking at 4chan? Were the police looking at it? I'm sure they were but we just want to find out whether these standards have been met."
He says there has been a trend of extremism emerging online, and it's vital new Zealanders are educated on the warning signs.
"People need to be made aware of what right wing extremists look like, what they're all about, because they're not part of the New Zealand DNA obviously."
Razzaq says it's crucial for all of New Zealand to report "any and all" threats to the police.
