A lack of funding has been labelled as the reason why Muslim extremists have been able to slip through the cracks and preach in prayer sessions at schools.

Muslim community leader Dr Jamal Rifi said the Islamic Council of NSW is 'starved' of funds which leaves no choice but to depend on volunteers and donations, The Daily Telegraph reported.

'This is a wake-up call for the Muslim community organisations to look at the bigger picture and rise to the challenge because our boys and girls are being targeted and marginalised by the conflict,' he said.

Muslim community leader Dr Jamal Rifi said the Islamic Council of NSW is 'starved' of funds which leaves no choice but to depend on volunteers and donations

'Now they haven’t been able to attract people as well as before and that has created a vacuum where, unfortunately, extremist people with an extremist point of view are more than happy to fill the gap,' he told the newspaper.

This comes as Milad bin Ahmad-Shah al-Ahmadzai was named by The Australian as the extremist who attended Epping Boys High School under the guise of an 'official' in the school-sanctioned prayer program back in 2009.

It is believed that a complaint was made about the class that Ahmadzai had conducted and he was never allowed to be involved in the program again.

It is the same school that the 17-year-old student attended who is under investigation by the counter-terrorism police following recent reports that the boy had been a radical preacher in the playground in Sydney’s northwest.

The student from Epping Boys High School has been accused of being a radical preacher in the playground

Counter-terrorism sources told the newspaper that the 17-year-old, who no longer attends the school, is believed to be an associate of Ahmadzai.

Ahmadzai is behind bars waiting to stand trial for the shooting of a man outside a Rydalmere club and an alleged ram raid at the Macquarie shopping centre.

It's understood the 17-year-old former student had attempted to flee the country on two separate occasions to travel to Syria in the Middle East but was stopped at the airport.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Murdoch has confirmed that an investigation is underway following the allegations.

'We are conducting an investigation into an allegation that a young man is attempting to influence students in his school to adopt his extremist views,' Mr Murdoch told the publication.

A NSW police spokeswoman could not confirm details into the investigation to Daily Mail Australia.

The revelation comes just months after two teenage brothers were detained at Sydney Airport by counter-terrorism authorities in March.

The two siblings, aged 16 and 17, from south west Sydney, were trying to fled the country but were reportedly collected by their mother after they were detained and their luggage searched.

The pair, from Sydney Boys High School, had reportedly booked flights to an unidentified country in the Middle East.

In an earlier audio recording about radicalisation in schools Assistant Commissioner Murdoch said the safety of students was of the utmost importance.

It comes after two teenage brothers were detained at Sydney Airport by counter-terrorism authorities in March

The southwest Sydney pair had reportedly booked flights to an unidentified country in the Middle East

'The NSW police clearly work closely to all our school communities to provide a safe environment,' Mr Murdoch said.

'Parents need to be reassured there is a high level of co-operation to ensure the safety of our young people.