Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett says she is “determined to find out” how media outlet Nine found out the agency was going to arrest alleged war criminal Ben Roberts-Smith at Sydney Airport on April 7, and has referred the matter to the National Anti-Corruption Commission.
In a broad defence of the AFP operation, Ms Barrett said the leaking of information regarding the arrest was disappointing and there would be consequences. “There were nine agencies or departments that knew of the date of the arrest,” she told a Senate estimates hearing on Thursday night.
“One media outlet was at the airport at the time of the individual’s arrest. I am not just disappointed the media outlet was there, but I am determined to find out how they knew of the arrest.
“I have no evidence to suggest the AFP provided information to the media about the date or details of the arrest, but out of an abundance of caution, the matter has been referred by the AFP and the (Office of the Special Investigator) to the NACC.”
The arrest of the Victoria Cross recipient sparked an uproar among those who believed Australia’s most decorated living soldier is innocent, or has been unreasonably pursued over incidents that allegedly occurred in the heat of war.
Questions over the dramatic arrest of Mr Roberts-Smith were raised quickly by public figures after police descended on the former SAS soldier, who was travelling with his children from Brisbane to Sydney before being taken into custody.
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson was one of the most vocal critics of the arrest, which she said had been undertaken in a “disgusting” and deliberately public way; billionaire Elon Musk also weighed into the incident, which he said “sounds insane”.
The referral to the NACC comes amid controversy over former commissioner Paul Brereton, who resigned after an “ongoing focus on matters relating to me personally” following reports of misconduct.
Ms Barrett said the time and place of Mr Roberts-Smith’s arrest was made considering the fact he “had no known fixed abode, and OSI had received information that the individual was planning to relocate overseas”.
“The reason to arrest the individual in Sydney and not Brisbane was an operational decision determined after discussing with relevant partners,” she said.
Ms Barrett said the AFP did not allow media “ride-alongs”.
“We do not allow or want media at our search warrants, or when we are arresting individuals, particularly at dangerous locations, or for those being charged with serious offences,” she said.
“The trade-off is that we will provide footage to the media with appropriate safeguards to protect members and crime scenes.
“If it is operationally sound and in the public interest, we will provide the footage to departments or agencies, which also use it as part of their crime deterrence messaging, and we use footage of arrests to educate about crime prevention and use it as a deterrence tool.”
Asked by One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts whether the arrest of Mr Roberts-Smith was to “justify more funding”, Labor frontbencher Murray Watt said he had “full confidence in our police forces to make good decisions”.
“We don’t interfere with decisions of the AFP as to who they charge and what for. That is an independent decision.”
Ms Barrett said an “operational decision” was made to arrest the individual at Sydney Domestic Airport because of requirements under ministerial guidelines.
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