Lawyer X royal commission head could charge Victoria Police with criminal offence
Victoria Police could be charged with a criminal offence after admitting on Tuesday it had not given the Lawyer X royal commission more than 1000 documents about a former drug squad detective once charged over a double murder.
The documents relate to notorious ex-detective Paul Dale, who was about to questioned for the fourth day by the inquiry into the police's use of informers, and should have been tendered to a commission supposed to shed light on one of the Victoria Police's darkest chapters.
Mr Dale was once charged with organising the murder of drug dealer and police informer Terence Hodson, who was slain with his wife in Kew in 2004.
“[Mr Dale was subject to] Murder investigations, perjury investigations. There’s obviously a vast amount of material, not all of which is relevant to these proceedings,” the force’s QC Justin Hannebery said.
The commission is investigating the force’s use of gangland barrister Nicola Gobbo as a registered police informer who gave information about some of the state’s most infamous criminals, some of whom were her own clients.
Mr Dale had a close association with Ms Gobbo, who he claimed had acted as his lawyer when he was under suspicion and once had an sexual liaison with.
Mr Hannebery said the documents may not have been relevant to the original notice to produce, but Commissioner Margaret McMurdo rejected this, saying the inquiry called for all documents relevant to Ms Gobbo’s work as Informer 3838.
"Can I suggest to you and those instructing you, remind your clients [Victoria Police] that this notice to produce, and their obligations under it, which are ongoing, that it is an offence not to comply with it and an agency of the crown, under the inquiries act, can be charged," Ms McMurdo said.
It was the strongest message from the commissioner in an inquiry that has been frustrated by a struggle to obtain secret documents from the force.
Under the state's Inquiries Act, failing to produce documents without a reasonable excuse or refusal to comply can carry a maximum two years in jail.
The royal commission said if a charge was laid, it would go to Victoria Police as the “state agency” and would be served on the Chief Commissioner’s office, but Commissioner Graham Ashton would not be personally charged.
Victoria Police has argued the sheer volume of documents the force had to check in order to protect other informers, police methodology and active investigations has slowed down its ability to produce documentation.
Counsel assisting the commission, Chris Winneke, QC, said it was "most unsatisfactory".
"We get a number of days into the witness and there's another 1000 pages of documents. It's like history repeating itself," Mr Winneke said.
More to come.