An in-depth investigation of all online communications by Sydney siege gunman Man Haron Monis has found no evidence that he had any contact with Islamic State, the coronial inquiry into the siege has heard.
But the self-styled sheikh made extensive use of social media and emails in a bid to spread his opinions and beliefs, including boasting that he was providing spiritual guidance to the organised crime group Brothers For Life.
The ongoing examination of Monis' background in the NSW Coroner's Court heard on Thursday that a member of the state's fraud and cyber crime squad had produced five volumes of evidence detailing the killer's digital life.
It revealed that Monis had paid Facebook to promote some of his posts, including a number of videos and pictures which breached the company's policies against "hateful, threatening and obscene" material.
In the months before the siege, Monis tried unsuccessfully to build a twitter following, managing to gain just nine followers.
However, once his identity as the gunman was revealed on December 16 after being shot by police, that figure swelled to 898.
Monis's most extreme commentary, the inquest heard, took place via email.
In these messages, a number of which were sent from the address PeaceActivist@hotmail.com, Monis compared himself to WikiLeaks' Julian Assange, and wrote to US President Barak Obama and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott decrying the presence of western soldiers in the Middle East.
In one email with the subject line "Sheik Haron is not a bikie" Monis said "there are some Muslim brothers who are Brothers For Life that sometimes have some religious inquiries and they contact Sheik Haron".
But the Sydney crime gang appeared to be the most extreme organisation Monis had ever been involved with.
"Is there any evidence that Mr Monis had any direct contact with IS or Islamic State?" junior counsel assisting the inquiry Sophie Callan asked Detective Senior Constable Murray Northy, now with the Unsolved Homicide Squad.
"Not that I've seen," the officer replied.
Earlier the inquest heard that, eight months before the siege, a qualified clinical nurse consultant at Silverwater jail assessed Monis and found that he had "no mental health issues".
Marco Rec said he had not known that Monis had been charged with more than 40 sexual assault charges and accessory to murder, instead relying on the offender's own claim that he was in for common assault.
He also accepted Monis' claims never to have been diagnosed with a mental illness.
The inquest has heard Monis saw two psychiatrists and a psychologist in 2010, each of whom diagnosed him with a mental illness or disorder.
The inquest continues.
