VICTORIA Police induced criminal barrister Nicola Gobbo to give evidence against former drug squad detective and accused murderer Paul Dale, then failed to uphold its agreement to protect and adequately compensate her, the lawyer claims.
Ms Gobbo, who has acted for some of the biggest names in Melbourne's underworld, made her claim for millions of dollars in a Supreme Court writ filed on Thursday, naming the state government along with former police chief commissioner Christine Nixon and her successor Simon Overland as defendants.
The writ was made public last night after legal proceedings to lift a suppression order stopping Ms Gobbo from being named as a witness in the case against Mr Dale, who is charged with the murder of police informer Terrence Hodson and his wife. Hodson was to give evidence against Mr Dale in a drugs case, which was dropped after his death.
Ms Gobbo claims police approached her in December 2008 and asked her if she would covertly record a conversation with Mr Dale at a hotel in Melbourne's CBD.Police then made numerous requests for her to make a statement against Mr Dale, despite knowing she was unwell and that it could lead to "inevitable, significant, perilous consequences".
Despite being "extremely reluctant", Ms Gobbo alleges she agreed on the basis she "would be afforded the highest level of attention" by police.
She also claims it was agreed she would be no worse off financially.
But the arrangement was not upheld, she says.
Police allegedly failed to provide her with necessary protection or financial support, at one point telling her she should "run for her life" in the event of a security threat.
"Having had the courage and strength to agree to become a witness for Victoria Police, I was required to give up my home, my security, my sense of life as I knew it," Ms Gobbo told ABC TV last night. "I was assured by Mr Overland that I would be compensated and that I would be left no worse off. My health has deteriorated as I was under constant stress and uncertainty. I remain in fear of my life since agreeing to give evidence for Victoria police."
She claims in her writ that on November 20, 2009 - before Mr Dale's case came before Melbourne Magistrates Court for an adjourned committal hearing - her support and management as a witness was terminated by the police.
She says "inappropriate and unnecessary" information about her was given to Mr Dale as part of the brief of evidence and she was referred to as a police informer in open court. She claims police requested she stop practising as a barrister, and is claiming at least $250,000 a year in lost future earnings, and more than $250,000 in expenses as a result of having to disappear.
Mr Overland told the ABC he wouldn't discuss the case but admitted he became involved in matters such as these on some occasions. "If we're expending money, we're accountable as any other government agency is around the expenditure of public funds," he said. It is understood prosecutors are in the process of deciding whether the case against Mr Dale can continue.
The Australian
