A Palestinian NSW Police officer has been spared jail for sending police intelligence about Middle Eastern organised crime figures to family and friends.
Housam Sobhi Khatib, 34, admitted sharing sensitive information from the police computer system 27 times between November 2019 and January 2023, pleading guilty to four counts of holder of public office misconduct himself, and nine counts of accessing restricted data held in a computer.
The intel included information on one crime syndicate planning to execute rivals, details relating to the 2022 killing of Lebanese gangster Mahmoud “Brownie” Ahmad in south-west Sydney, and about a person with links to the Alameddine organised crime network.
Khatib was sentenced to a three-year intensive correction order with an 8pm to 6am curfew and 400 hours of community service by Judge Gina O’Rourke in the Downing Centre District Court on Thursday, Fairfield Advance reported.
The court heard Khatib got a “rude shock” when he joined the mainly White Australian NSW Police Force as he had grown up in a Palestinian household, and allegedly heard other officers make racist comments, contributing to feelings of isolation and poor mental health, resulting in poor judgement.
Judge O’Rourke said the former leading senior constable knew what he was doing was wrong, had disregarded public safety, and committed a gross breach of trust.
“It was a deliberate misuse of intel to benefit those close to him who were not privy to the information,” she said.
“He received no financial gain and having access to the information made him feel important and powerful.”
But she ruled he was unlikely to reoffend, regretted his actions, and noted he had lost his good reputation.
Header image: Housam Sobhi Khatib.
