Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton tells the Lawyer X royal commission he did not think to question Nicola Gobbo's role as an informer because it was sanctioned by senior police.
Even when his job was to make sure police were behaving properly, the man now leading Victoria Police did not think to question Nicola Gobbo's use as a source because it was sanctioned by senior officers, the royal commission has heard.
Grilled for a second day on the stand, Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton was again questioned about his time as assistant director of the anti-corruption body, the Office of Police Integrity . Commissioner Ashton told the Royal Commission into the Management of Police Informants there was no suggestion there was anything"untoward going on" when he discovered the criminal defence barrister was informing on her clients in 2007.
His appearance at the inquiry came as Ms Gobbo broke her silence on the scandal during an interview with 7.30, saying she did not trust Victoria Police enough to enter witness protection and her"greatest fear is the police themselves"The barrister turned informer said she and her children had been living overseas, in what she described as an isolated and desperate experience.Questioned about the claims of police threats outside the inquiry, Commissioner Ashton told reporters he was"not aware of that at all".
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