A former Australian Federal Police officer has criticised the agency for the way it arrested SAS hero Ben Roberts-Smith for alleged war crimes, saying it made him feel “deeply ashamed”.
Cameron Hardiman, whose 16 years with the AFP included overseas peacekeeping and humanitarian missions as well as organised crime and counter-terror investigations, spoke out about the controversial arrest on Instagram on Wednesday and Thursday.
Roberts-Smith was arrested in front of his teenage daughters on Tuesday despite police knowing he was prepared to come to a station if they decided to lay charges, and Nine Newspapers, which has led a years-long campaign against the Victoria Cross recipient, appeared to have been tipped off in advance.
An AFP film crew was on hand to film Roberts-Smith, Australia’s most decorated living soldier, being marched off the flight from Brisbane, and AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett then held a press conference to publicise the arrest.
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“I am deeply ashamed of my former employer’s handling of the arrest of Ben Roberts-Smith, The AFP and the OSI [Office of Special Investigator] had been investigating him for years and were well aware of his every move,” Mr Hardiman wrote in one post
“His arrest could have been carried out discreetly – at his home or through his legal representatives. Instead, a deliberate decision was made to arrest him on a crowded commercial flight, in front of his family and a captive audience, with media eagerly waiting.
“I have seen paedophiles, drug traffickers, corrupt police officers , and some of the worst elements of our society treated with more dignity. Commissioner Barrett and those responsible should be ashamed. I know I am.”
In other posts Mr Hardiman, who also spent 20 years in the Victoria Police, said the AFP had turned the arrest into a “spectacle”, and demanded to know who was responsible, and questioned the $300 million spent by the OSI on investigating alleged war crimes.
SAS hero Ben Roberts-Smith has now been charged with five counts of war crime – murder, and refused bail.
He faces life imprisonment if convicted.
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After the arrest a source close to Roberts-Smith told the Daily Mail it seemed calculated to “inflict maximum distress”, and said the former soldier had repeatedly told investigators he would present himself “at a time and place of their choosing should any charges be brought”.
“Instead, he was arrested upon arrival in Sydney during a short visit with his children,” the source said.
“In doing so, authorities chose to inflict maximum distress in front of his two young daughters. It is particularly concerning that media, including Nine News, appeared to have been notified in advance.”
Political commentator Caleb Bond also questioned how Nine managed to have cameras on hand in an opinion piece for news.com.au, and online sleuths have pointed out that dates in the URLs of articles about the arrest by Nine mastheads The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald indicate they were prepared a day earlier.
Header image: Left, Ben Roberts-Smith being arrested. Right, Ms Barrett announcing the arrest (AFP).
