May 31, 2011

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/standen-asked-dpp-to-drop-charge-court-told-20110530-1fczm.html

IN 2003 the former NSW Crime Commission assistant director, Mark Standen, asked his boss to contact the then deputy director of public prosecutions, Greg Smith, about dropping a charge against a drug dealer he is accused of conspiring with five years later.

Yesterday the Supreme Court heard that in May 2003, Mr Standen emailed the commissioner, Phillip Bradley, asking him to contact Mr Smith about a money-laundering charge laid against James Kinch, who had offered to provide information to the Crime Commission.

"It is the stumbling block to our confiscation settlement and further debriefing of Kinch," he advised Mr Bradley.

Mr Standen is on trial for conspiring with Mr Kinch and others to import a large quantity of pseudoephedrine into Australia via a Dutch drug syndicate.

Mr Kinch, who was targeted by the commission from late 2002 after information received from overseas, allegedly worked with the same Dutch syndicate. After he was arrested in March 2003 he was charged with money laundering and supplying a commercial quantity of ecstasy.

Mr Bradley wrote to Mr Smith - now the Attorney-General - describing Mr Kinch as "one of the workers".

The money-laundering charge was dropped; Mr Kinch forfeited about $700,000 in assets seized by the commission, and was soon granted bail.

Mr Kinch told the commission he had laundered $50 million to $60 million through currency exchange businesses in just over a year in Australia and offered help to launder more money in a "controlled operation" with the commission.

In November 2003 Mr Standen wrote to the DPP after it had rejected an application by Mr Kinch's lawyer to drop the remaining drug charges.

Mr Standen outlined the "frequent high-quality information" provided by Mr Kinch and his willingness to provide more information, including about the planned importation of 2 million ecstasy tablets.

The drug charges were dropped in February 2004 and Mr Kinch soon left the country.

The trial continues.