Thursday, June 16, 2016

The Dodger: Roger Caleb Rogerson - The light and shade of a killer


Criminal organisations in their characteristics match legitimate organisations: there are big ones: there are small ones: people float in and out of them. It is remarkable, absolutely remarkable, how often you come across the same people in very diverse activities, all of which are criminal.
 - Douglas Meagher, QC, counsel assisting Costigan Royal Commission.

Roger Rogerson: Ah, you see, you're starting off on the wrong foot mate. I don't help you; you help me and then we see what's left over.
Arthur "Neddy" Smith: What, I'm the only one?
Roger Rogerson: Yeah, we shot all the others.
Roger Rogerson: Keep your head down and it will all blow over
~~ Blue_Murder_(miniseries) 

Sallieanne Huckstepp knew her time was limited after speaking out about Dodgy Roger Rogerson

*Freeman made another mistake the following year. On 28 March 1979, Bruce McDonald, deputy leader of the NSW Opposition, asked a question which suggested that Freeman had 'unusual and undue influence' over the police squad that was supposed to control gambling, the 21 Division. That night, Freeman was given time on Channel 7's Michael Willesee Show to deny any involvement in organised crime. The next day, seeking to confront McDonald, he went with a Willesee film crew to Parliament House. That evening in the Upper House, Barrie Unsworth, who had been approached by the television team, said he believed that Freeman and the Willesee team had committed a 'gross breach of privilege.'
On 3 April, the Independent MLA, John Hatton, moved an urgency motion deploring the action of Freeman, 'a man designated within the administration of the Minister for Police as an organised crime figure, in bringing a television crew on to the steps of Parliament House...' Drawing on material in a confidential NSW Police Crime Intelligence Unit report of March 1977, Hatton summarised Freeman's career thus:
'It has been recorded that Freeman should be considered one of the leading criminal figures in this State, together with Stanley John Smith, with whom he has been closely associated, and who is said to have replaced the so-called Mr Big, Leonard Arthur McPherson. The links with international organised crime are well established... In April 1978, just a year ago, Freeman was deported from the United States of America after being arrested in Las Vegas in connection with a false passport offence.
'His last recorded conviction in Australia was for a similar offence, when he used a false passport to enter the United States of America with Stan Smith in 1968, when they were guests of one Joseph Dan Testa, nominated as a member of the Chicago organised crime family... It was largely the investigations prompted by the appearance of Testa in Sydney in subsequent years, and the associations he made here, that led to the Moffitt Royal Commission in 1973-74. As a result of the Moffitt Royal Commission, Mr Freeman was made the number one target of the NSW Police Crime Intelligence Unit, which was established as a direct result of that inquiry.
...
'Of even more relevance to the question of urgency, and to members of this House, particularly when it is remembered that Freeman was on the steps of Parliament House, is the fact that the NSW police have evidence that he was the principal figure in what might be called the Taiping conspiracy. After the Premier announced the Government's intention to legalise casinos, underworld leaders and illegal casino owners met at the Taiping restaurant in Elizabeth Street, Sydney. It is urgent that it be recognised that, on a tape recording made of that meeting, Stan Smith is heard referring to Freeman as being "with" the casino operators. Smith called upon the assembled gathering to put up hard cash to bribe members of this Parliament to try to secure the control of casino licences for criminal interests...'
The Labor Party voted against Mr Hatton's motion and it was defeated 60-34.
Three weeks later, at Freeman's Yowie Bay home, a gunman with a light calibre weapon shot Freeman in the left side of the neck. The bullet passed through his mouth and exited just below the right temple without doing serious harm. Police told The Sun that the weapon indicated an 'amateur' gunman, but there was speculation that some other organised crime leader might have taken the view that Freeman's approach to Parliament House had drawn too much attention to organised crime activities.
Leonard Arthur McPherson , 63. Giving evidence in 1983 at the Juanita Nielsen inquest, McPherson denied having told Federal police that a former NSW police officer, Fred Krahe, had killed Miss Nielsen. He claimed that Federal police had sent false information to Manila in 1977 warning that McPherson was entering the Philippines to assassinate President Marcos. Arrested at gunpoint, McPherson and two other Australians were held for three days in death row in the dreaded Fort Benefacio prison, facing the prospect of a firing squad, before being released.
McPherson's name has continued to be linked with Manila. In 1980, the Woodward Royal Commission reported that a wanted criminal, Martin Olson, was running a bar in Manila for McPherson, and that he was 'looking after McPherson's prostitution business in Manila.' Woodward also reported that during 1975 a person was 'alleged to have gone to Manila, at least once a month' to bring back 'white powder' for McPherson.
Note: Stanley John Smith should not be confused with any of the numerous other Smiths in the milieu: Arthur Stanley (Neddy) Smith, described in TFR3 as 'drug importer and trafficker', who was the informer for Sergeant Roger Caleb Rogerson, and the man who arranged the fatal meeting between Rogerson and Warren Lanfranchi in 1981; Neddy's half-brother Edwin William Smith, jailed for possession of 1.6 kilograms of heroin; Edward James (jockey) Smith; or Raymond Smith, an early acquaintance of Murray Stewart Riley
~ Evan Whitton

Rogerson makes a deal with the devil


Australia is blessed with many brave men and women, however few are as brave  and courageous as John Hatton who exposed the police corruption in NSW.  We saw John Hatton MP make his famous speech in NSW Parliament before the Wood Royal Commission gets underway

John Hatton at Husky

RESEARCH REPORT ON TRENDS IN POLICE CORRUPTION

Mark Standen: 2008-06-01 

markstanden.blogspot.com  - Memories of SIOG Senior Intelligence Officers Group gatherings circa 2006 to 2010 are flooding in ....
"Roger Rogerson has alleged he and a friend were asked by Mark Standen to find $1m supposedly ..."

Roger Caleb Rogerson: Roger Rogerson may make second bid ... 

roger-caleb-rogerson.blogspot.com › rog...
Oct 28, 2014 - Former detective Roger Rogerson may launch another bid for release on bail ahead of his committal ...
*Google Bloggers On the Dodger*
Google via Parliamentary Crownies

The bastard cop from Bankstown with a taste for blood and boasting:
Former detective Roger Rogerson once said the people he shot never ended up in hospital – they went straight to the morgue. But on this particular occasion, he planned to make someone disappear.
It was late May in 2014 and the sun had just dipped out of sight when Rogerson and Glen McNamara cracked open a six-pack of James Boag's inside a seaside apartment at Cronulla.
Rogerson was wearing a t-shirt, hat and black tracksuit pants– all of which were covered in gunshot residue. McNamara's daughter Jessica sat on an ottoman chatting to the pair and noticed that her father appeared "pale" and "twitchy". She had no idea what was hidden in the car park several floors below. Stuffed inside a silver Ocean & Earth surfboard bag was the body of 20-year-old university student Jamie Gao

*The story behind the story of Roger Rogerson and Glen McNamara


During his career, Roger Rogerson, the Shire Boy,  was one of the most decorated officers in the police force, having received at least 13 awards for bravery, outstanding policemanship and devotion to duty including the Peter Mitchell Trophy, the highest annual police award. During his time in office he was implicated in—but never convicted of—two killings, bribery, assault and drug dealing
In 1999 Rogerson was convicted of perverting the course of justice and lying to the Police Integrity Commission. Rogerson is also known for his association with other NSW detectives who are reputed to have been corrupt, including Ray "Gunner" Kelly and Fred Krahe, and with a number of organised crime figures, including Arthur "Neddy" Smith and Christopher Dale Flannery. Smith was a convicted heroin dealer, rapist and armed robber who has claimed Rogerson gave him the "green light" to commit crimes in New South Wales (NSW). Henry and Lanfranchi were also heroin dealers and armed robbers, while Flannery specialised in contract killing
In May 2014 Rogerson was remanded in prison after being charged, with another former NSW detective Glen McNamara, with the murder of student Jamie Gao, and supply of drugs. Both pleaded not guilty in January 2015. Their trial was started in July 2015, but was aborted after two days for legal reasons, publication of which was not permitted. Following a re-trial, both Rogerson and McNamara were found guilty of murder 

Rogerson published his autobiography in 2009. Alan Jones performed the honours at the launch.
Rogerson published his autobiography in 2009. Alan Jones performed the honours at the launch

Alan Jones on Roger Rogerson: book launch remembered - Crikey


Rogerson a real life 'Dirty Harry'


Roger Rogerson: 60 Minutes
NSW detective Roger Rogerson speaks to the media at Police Headquarters in 1985.NSW detective Roger Rogerson speaks to the media at Police Headquarters in 1985.Photo: Russell McPhedran

 End of line for Roger ‘The Dodger’ Rogerson who was born in the Sutherland Shire, signed on as a police cadet aged 17, in 1976.
* Investigated drug trafficking with the National Crime Authority.
* Worked in Kings Cross in 1988 as a detective senior constable under corrupt police officers Graham “Chook” Fowler and Larry Churchill.
* Worked with the police Internal Security Unit to expose corruption involving police and pedophiles Robert “Dolly” Dunn and Colin Fisk.
* After handing over evidence of Dunn and Fisk manufacturing and supplying police with amphetamines, his identity was leaked and he was forced to flee the country.
* Gave evidence to the Wood Royal Commission claiming sacked senior NSW policewoman Lola Scott helped protect Dunn and Fisk but later said none of the evidence was acted upon.
* In 2003 he gave evidence to the Federal Parliamentary Crime Committee, in which he re-stated his claims about Scott, and claimed he had been falsely accused of an armed robbery. He subsequently sued NSW Police for defamation.
* Published books Dirty Work and Savage Obsessions, detailing his time at Kings Cross.
* Arrested in May 2014 with Rogerson, charged with the murder of Jamie Gao and supplying drugs * Found guilty of both charges, June 15, 2016.
TIMELINE: HOW JAMIE GAO WAS MURDERED

The last time I saw Roger Rogerson  — apart from in court this year — he was limping away from the London Hotel in Balmain.  It was late 2013 and we'd just had lunch, and more than a few beers. His body was frail — partly the result of an accident in 2003 and partly the encroaching years.
But if the body was waning, his mind was as sharp as ever. Like the best detectives of his generation he could recall minute details of armed robberies and murders he had investigated decades earlier — the full name and date of birth of the criminal. The make and number plate of the car the crook was driving at the time of his arrest. The full name of a murder victim's mother. The Christmas cards he had received from families, grateful he had put a killer behind bars.
Roger Rogerson: The light and shade of a killer

The life and death of Sallie-Anne Huckstepp

Once a poster boy for good policing, another extraordinary chapter in Roger Rogerson's life has come to a head. The former detective sergeant of the New South Wales Police Force became infamous for his alleged crimes and misdemeanours in the 1980s. For a whole decade, Rogerson was better known as "Roger the Dodger" in media headlines.
And despite being implicated in two killings and a host of other underworld activity, he continues to protest his innocence.

How barrister Charles Waterstreet caused Rogerson, McNamara trial to be aborted
What the Rogerson jury weren't told

Roger Rogerson: A life of crime and comedy

Google on Roger Roherson 

Private Sydney: Richard Roxburgh back to play Roger Rogerson in Blue Murder 2 Blue Murder

THE limping gait, the bald speckled pate, the furrowed brow and the silver-rimmed spectacles are all unmistakeable.
And to confused bystanders watching on one Padstow Heights street yesterday it seemed the slippery former police detective Roger Rogerson, their longtime neighbour, was once again at large.
This seemed unlikely just a day after the 75-year-old had been convicted of the 2014 murder of university student Jamie Gao.



Richard Roxburgh is playing Roger Rogerson in Blue Murder 2. Picture: Ross Schultz

But Rogerson was in fact thought to be suburbs away in Silverwater jail, being assessed by Corrective Services for prison transfer — the neatly tucked-in black polo shirt and blue jeans replaced with a prison-issue green tracksuit. Blue Murder Sequel Richard Roxburgh


The tome that causes the most bile in the former detective is The Dodger, a none-too-flattering biography penned by Duncan McNab, himself an ex-cop. “He professes to have worked in the hard squads, but that’s all bloody bullshit,” Rogerson says of McNab. “He’s a bloody soft-cock. I gave him all these opportunities to talk to me, but he didn’t wish to. He doesn’t have much going for him as far as being a cop is concerned. He’s a bloody big sook. He wrote a book which was completely slanted. I’ve had people come up to me and say, ‘Mate, you wrote that book, The Dodger? What a terrific story!’ I didn’t write it! I think it’s shithouse, but a lot of people think that it’s fuckin’ fantastic!”
+When Filmink met Roger Rogerson+

Serial killer – with a police badge

In August 1991 he began to investigate Neddy Smith’s allegations against Roger Rogerson.
Public and private hearings were held by ICAC in 1992-1993, with Greg Smith (now MP) as counsel assisting. This was known as Operation Milloo.
There were Milloo reports in February 1994 and April 1994.
It’s fair to say that this inquiry didn’t get within cooee of cracking the nut.
In May 1994, John Hatton MP (Ind) forced a Royal Commission on police corruption. The vote was 46-45.
That was the inquiry undertaken by Jim Wood.
At the time Hatton remarked that ICAC …
“does not handle corruption adequately and that is the reason we have come to this point.” John Hatton and his instinct
A recent joint PIC-Independent Commission Against Corruption [ICAC] investigation into corruption at Liverpool council and links between New South Wales police officers and Roger Rogerson was seriously compromised when a New South Wales police officer seconded to the ICAC leaked information that he had overheard about Rogerson's phone calls being intercepted. The officer passed this information to a former New South Wales police officer whom he knew to be an associate of Rogerson. This information was duly passed to Rogerson. The provisions of the Police Integrity Commission Act allow the PIC to employ or second police officers from all jurisdictions except New South Wales. Further, the PIC can use New South Wales police officers in joint task forces.

[This is Google's cache of http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/V3Key/LA20020628019 It is a snapshot of the page as it appeared on 25 Apr 2016 13:55:35 GM]

Roger Rogerson | Aussie Criminals and Crooks

 

*Themes in an Inquisition: Justice Murphy and the Liberal Press 

[ http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/UNSWLJ/1987/6.pdf ]

The hidden impact of the law on reporting - AustLII

www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/CommsLawB/1992/

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