Labor
UNBELIEVABLE: Witnesses tell court Theo’s accuser is lying
There have been many reasons to question the accusation made against former Cabinet minister Theo Theophanous. But yesterday’s shocking revelations in the committal hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court have provided serious reason to question the word of his accuser.
Ultimately the whole case depends on whether his accuser is lying or not. Following her accusation, Theophanous resigned from the ministry.
The Age – which had previously reported the accuser’s claims as fact - reports today that one of the witnesses in the case told the court that the accuser’s version of discussions and emails between them were not correct.
They continue:
The alleged victim told police that on September 10, 1998, Theophanous raped her on the couch in his Parliament House office.
She said that later she spoke to three friends about the alleged assault, but yesterday two of these women said the conversations never happened.
One woman, who was friends with the alleged victim for almost 20 years, said she ended their friendship because she felt pressured to make a false statement. “She wanted me to help her out with this case. She was coaching me to say things … (to make) a false statement,” the woman told the court.
Ominously, the witness also denied writing a number of emails that the accuser provided to Victoria Police and the Office of Public Prosecutions to encourage them to charge Theophanous.
The witness is important to the case because the accuser’s story was that she’d rung the witness three times during the evening she claims to have been attacked.
Another witness was also subject to the accuser’s manipulations, the court heard. She told the court of their conversations:
“She said that I might hear something in the media, that she would get lots of money (she may have mentioned millions) and it was political.”
Very political indeed it seems.
Discussion
14 comments for “UNBELIEVABLE: Witnesses tell court Theo’s accuser is lying”
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Here’s a suggestion VEX: wait for the outcome of the trial.
What a waste of court time and money. Any twit can make an accusation against a minister. Theo is farked no matter which way the Magistrate goes at this committal. Mud sticks, even if you are innocent.
I have always thought of him as a dodgy Labor boy, but even I have to agree this appears to have been totally unfair for him. I hope he sues the pants off everyone:
- The accuser for making false allegations.
- The police for failing to check to see if the ‘witnesses’ actually had anything to witness.
- The DPP for allowing such a weak case to make it to court.
- The Age for assuming the allegations were true.
This has been a shameful incident that has not helped a single person.
What’s really sad is that if this goes to trial and Theophanous is found “not guilty”, then he will have to pay all his legal costs, probably well in excess of $100,000 himself.
Why is it that if a person is found not guilty they still must pay their court costs? ie. an innocent person can lose their life savings on false accusations.
Surely the Prosecution should pay for innocent peoples’ costs?
The committal hearing heard the friend that was supposed to have received the alleged victim’s SOS call, and then have later called her back with an excuse for her to escape Mr Theophanous’s office, had no memory of the conversations.
This was despite the fact that phone records show the complainant did call her and she called her back.
The Theo case is crumbling badly. Like watching a train wreck.
Well Epstein’s Mother, maybe that’s because nothing memorable actually happened on that night. The call was probably totally unrelated to Theo… Do you recall every phone conversation you had in 1998?
Epstein’s mother clearly not Einstein’s mother.
I wouldn’t know if it did or did not happen. I would hope that the DPP have not gone to trial based on one person’s word against another. I have a sneaking suspicion that the Prosecution has other evidence (i.e. forensic) which they would not reveal at the Committal.
Epstein’s Mother 9.7.09 18:01 makes an interesting point, telephone records don’t lie. Having read the two witnesses testimony, I quite frankly find it unconvincing, it appears that they are telling fibs. The devil is in the detail of their testimony.
Also, I’m sure Police would have checked such things out prior to charging, and i have a sneaking suspicion that the Prosecution may have been a little surprised by the testimony, that is stories may have changed.
Funny. Theo to be found not guilty. Julian Sheezel still has not cleared his name of serious criminal allegations made in State Parliament.
“I have a sneaking suspicion that the Prosecution has other evidence (i.e. forensic) which they would not reveal at the Committal.”
That’s useless if the matter is dismissed at the committal stage, which appears likely.
theo .. snd me a txt will b hot
Herald Sun also reported it as fact. They are also to blame.
Herald Sun: “A PICTURE IS BETTER THAN 1000 WORDS”
Casual Observer – there is no forensic evidence, the witnesses have not changed their positions in the slightest, the prosecution is desperately bloodthirsty and the police are both lazy and stupid if not blatantly corrupt.
But you know who has changed their story? The complainant. 17 times in her police-tailored draft statements.
Technically, an investigation is not meant to begin until a complainant has made and signed a statement for the police. In this case, the investigation began before any statement was signed and all the information accumulated by the police over their 2 years of investigating was incorporated into the complainants final statement, so that she could construct a credible story that only scantily resembles her original allegations.
Too bad that even with all the help from VicPol her lies are still completely transparent.