BREAKING NEWS: From a police poster boy to a criminal record: Australia's most famous cop Gary Jubelin dodges jail for illegally recording a William Tyrrell person of interest but is fined $10,000
- Gary Jubelin has been slapped with criminal convictions over illegal recordings
- The ex-NSW Police Force posterboy was given a criminal record on Wednesday
- That's despite emotional testimony from William Tyrrell's foster mother
- 'He has never met William, but he knows William,' she told the court
- Top lawyers and ex-cops gave character references to the well-known cop
The former top cop in the William Tyrrell investigation has been hit with four criminal convictions and a $10,000 fine for illegal recordings of an elderly person of interest.
In a heavy blow, former NSW Police posterboy Gary Jubelin was given a criminal record as he was sentenced for phone recordings made between November 2017 and December 2018.
The veteran homicide detective was investigating the little boy's disappearance when he secretly recorded Paul Savage, an elderly pensioner who lived on the same street as William's foster grandmother when the little boy, three, vanished.
Handing down his sentence on Wednesday, Magistrate Ross Hudson said Jubelin's recordings of Mr Savage, 75, occurred over a 12 month period and struck 'across the heart, nature and purpose' of the law banning secret recordings.
Former NSW Police Force posterboy Gary Jubelin was found guilty of four charges of illegally recording an elderly person of interest. On right, his lawyer, Margaret Cunneen SC
The detective -turned-columnist's barrister, Margaret Cunneen SC, had asked the court not to convicted Jubelin as he was still of working age and had exemplary character.
But Mr Hudson said Jubelin's illegal recordings could have possibly led to a case against William's killer being thrown out of court or being unable to be prosecuted, as it was obtained illegally.
'This sentence must maintain its integrity to send a message to the offender, and to the general public, in terms of a person's rights in terms of privacy.
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'It won't be accepted or tolerated in terms of people being illegally recorded in this regard,' he said.
Jubelin stood up immediately on sentence but was told to 'relax' by the magistrate.
William's foster mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, repeatedly choked up in court as she testified to the officer's integrity in a character reference earlier on Wednesday.
'He has never met William, but he knows William,' she told the court.
The foster mother said she had been told by no less than then-state Premier Mike Baird and police minister Troy Grant that Jubelin was the 'best cop' in the state, and praised his 'courage'.
'We were reassured he was the man that was needed. He was the guy that was going to get it done,' she said.
Little boy lost: William Tyrrell vanished from his foster grandmother's home at Kendall, on the New South Wales north coast, on September 12, 2014
Former NSW police deputy commissioner Nick Kaldas, Greens Legislative Council member David Shoebridge and ex Crown Prosecutor Mark Tedeschi QC also gave character references for Jubelin.
In submissions on sentencing, Ms Cunneen SC said it was 'an exceptional case involving an exceptional man', and that he had made a 'mistake'.
Jubelin had recorded Mr Savage on four separate occasions between November 3, 2017 and December 28, 2018.
Ms Cunneen asked a conviction not be recorded, claiming her client was abused by a passerby on Wednesday saying: 'You're going to have fun in jail mate. You deserve it'.
But Crown Prosecutor Phil Hogan said Mr Jubelin had breached Mr Savage's 'civil rights' not to be secretly recorded by the state.
Jubelin, right, with his son, Jake, and daughter, Gemma, ahead of his sentencing on Wednesday
Mr Hogan said Jubelin had a 'complete lack of contrition and remorse'.
Former NSW deputy police commissioner Nick Kaldas gave a character reference for Jubelin in court
'He chose to break the law, he knew he was breaking the law ... and then he was dishonest about it, in interviews, in contact with media leading up to the hearing, and in his evidence before this court.'
He asked a sentence that would deter other police officers from breaching the law - and that was what he got.
Magistrate Ross Hudson, who presided over the case, delivered a scathing three hour judgment against Jubelin earlier this week.
He said Jubelin had 'belittled and humiliated' Savage and pursued him 'at all costs' despite 'no DNA, fingerprints ... no leads, nothing'.
Jubelin said he is appealing the decision.
Timeline of William Tyrrell's disappearance
Still missing: William Tyrrell vanished from his foster grandmother's home five years ago
2014
September 12 - Dressed in a Spiderman outfit, three-year-old William Tyrrell goes missing from the garden while visiting members of his foster family on the NSW north coast.
September 21 - Police stop searching for the missing boy after scouring surrounding bushland and neighbouring houses.
2015
January 20 - Police search the home and business of washing machine repairman Bill Spedding, who had been due to carry out repairs at the house at the time the three-year-old went missing.
Detectives take items for testing including a mattress, computer and vehicles. They drain his septic tank.
January 23 - The washing machine repairman publicly denies any involvement in William's disappearance and says he and his wife are on the verge of a breakdown due to the public attention.
February 19 - Homicide detectives take over the case and say it's likely William was abducted.
March 2 - Police fruitlessly search an area of bushland near Bonny Hills for three days after a tip-off.
April 17 - William's foster parents speak publicly for the first time in an emotional video released through police which does not identify them.
April 17 - Police say the boy may have been a victim of a paedophile ring.
September 6 - The Nine Network's 60 Minutes reveal two suspicious cars were parked on the street the morning William went missing.
September 12 - 'Where's William' week is launched one year after he disappeared.
2016
September 12 - A $1million reward is offered for information leading to William's return.
2017
August 24 - William's foster child status is revealed after a landmark court ruling.
2018
June 12 - NSW Police announce the start of a four-week forensic search of bushland conducted by Strike Force Rosann.
June 14 - William's grandmother scolds police who have failed to find the young boy after four years, and claims their latest search is 'just for show'.
June 26 - The forensic search continues on what would have been William's seventh birthday.
June 27 - Strike Force Rosann announces it will move the search to an 800sqm block of bushland just 4km from where William was last seen alive.
June 5 - The latest search ends with Detective Chief Inspector Gary Jubelin saying the case could soon go to a coroner.
August - Investigation leader Detective Chief Inspector Gary Jubelin and a sergeant get into a disagreement during a briefing.
September 13 - Police reveal they found a burned out car wreck belonging to a former person of interest.
December 19 - Coroners say William could still be alive and the inquest will determine if he died or not.
2019
February - DCI Jubelin is removed from the investigation amid a misconduct probe.
March 25 - The inquest into William Tyrrell's disappearance begins, with William's biological and foster parents appearing over the course of a week.
The inquest's first batch of hearings focused on William's family situation and the events leading up to his disappearance.
Both his foster and biological parents were quizzed, as were neighbours who helped in the search.
It was disclosed that William's biological parents absconded with him for six weeks in 2012, following a children's court order.
William's biological father slammed authorities for letting them down.
'Authorities f***ed up ... The minister had a duty of care to keep William safe until he was 18. That was not the case at all.'
May: DCI Jubelin quits the Police Force.
June: Four charges of breaching the Surveillance Devices Act are laid against DCI Jubelin. He denies any wrongdoing whatsover
August: The second tranche of inquest hearings began on Wednesday August 7
Inquest hears Bill Spedding, a NSW mid-north coast repairman and one-time person of interest in the disappearance of William Tyrrell, met his wife for coffee about 9.30am in Laurieton, a 15-minute drive from Kendall, on the day William went missing.
They then attended a school assembly across the road to see a child in their care receive an award.
The inquest heard how a man who claims he saw William Tyrrell unrestrained in the back of a speeding car on the day the child went missing was waiting for police to interview him to tell them what he saw.
He told the inquest he contacted police but did not hear back about an interview.
It took it took almost 1000 days before he was able to reveal what he saw to police.
The coroner orders an urgent probe into the final image that was taken on the day William vanished as metadata suggests the picture may have been taken 118 minutes earlier than originally thought.
The image has a 'created time' of 7.39am and a 'corrected time' of 9.37am, a new document from the 2000-page evidence brief.
The coronial inquest has been delayed for another eight months with the next round of hearings happening in March 2020.
November 11: The deputy state coroner releases footage of William Tyrrell and family at Heatherbrae McDonalds, on September 11, 2014
Feb - March 2020: Gary Jubelin defends four charges of illegally recording person of interest Paul Savage in court hearing
February 21: Daily Mail Australia reveals convicted paedophile Frank Abbott was arrested in custody for the purposes of a police interview about William's disappearance
March 2020: The coronial inquest into William's disappearance resumes but stops with two days to go due to the coronavirus outbreak
April 6, 2020: Magistrate Ross Hudson delivers his verdict in Gary Jubelin case
April 8, 2020: Jubelin is convicted of all four charges and fined $10,000. Ex-cop says he will appeal
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