Victoria Cross winner Ben Roberts-Smith, the subject of allegations of misconduct while serving with the SAS in Afghanistan, has asked Attorney-General Christian Porter to refer reports by Fairfax Media to the Australian Federal Police, claiming breaches of the law and said he would sue Fairfax for defamation.
Fairfax Media alleges Roberts-Smith, now out of the military, is under investigation by ADF for criminal misconduct on the battlefield by the SAS in Afghanistan.
The long-running inquiry is being led by NSW Supreme Court Justice, Paul Brereton, who is an officer in the Army Reserve.
Fairfax Media has published detailed accounts of the alleged claims made against Roberts-Smith, which he denies.
The court could not stop Fairfax Media publishing the allegations it seems probably because of the journalist sources protection rules.
Roberts-Smith received his VC for bravery during an assault on an Afghan village in 2010.
Fairfax reported that it had “confirmed by speaking to 4 special forces insiders that among the allegations made to the Inspector-General’s inquiry is that patrols he helped lead brutally mistreated unarmed Afghans.
In a Sunday email to Christian Porter, Attorney General, Roberts-Smith’s lawyer Mark O'Brien wrote that “our client has been the subject of an unfair and baseless campaign by the Fairfax Press to malign his reputation and his service record in Afghanistan.
"We are concerned that the reported articles published by Fairfax disclose breaches of Commonwealth laws.”
It is alleged that there are breaches by both Fairfax Media, in obtaining and publishing classified information, and by the current or past members of the Australian Defence Force who provided it.
Media laws apparently allow journalists to be able to get away with what for others would be considered “for a criminal investigation and, where applicable, prosecution against the laws of the Commonwealth”.
A spokesman for Porter said the Attorney-General would consider the correspondence over the next several days.
Roberts-Smith in a Sunday statement accused Fairfax of “wanton disregard” of Commonwealth law and a “smear campaign”.
Leaking to the media of operational matters in breach of the Defence Act,” i suggest if not by the media but by the informers.
Intetesting turn of events for Fairfax Media and now ACA at Channel 9.
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