Former SAS soldier charged with war crime murder could be targeted by extremists,court told

A former SAS soldier accused of murdering an Afghan man in a war crime has been granted a temporary court order preventing his name being published,after his lawyer argued he could be targeted in custody by Islamic extremists and their sympathisers.

The man was arrested a week ago,three years after the ABC’sFour Corners aired footage allegedly showing him gunning down a man in a wheat field during a deployment to Afghanistan in 2012.

A soldier,who cannot be named,has been charged with a war crime after he allegedly gunned down an Afghan man in a wheat field in 2012.

A soldier,who cannot be named,has been charged with a war crime after he allegedly gunned down an Afghan man in a wheat field in 2012.Supplied

He became the first Australian soldier or veteran to be charged with a war crime.

On Monday,defence barrister Phillip Boulten,SC,applied in Downing Centre Local Court for his client to be released on bail,suggesting the man has known since at least 2020 that he was likely to be charged and made no attempt to flee.

He said his client was no longer in the Australian Defence Force after being discharged on medical grounds in 2021,and was “no threat to the community”,having no criminal record and no history of antisocial conduct.

Boulten said his client was referred to the AFP by the defence minister in March 2020,the same monthFour Corners was broadcast,and was suspended from duty two days later. Federal police searched his home in May 2022.

‘There’s no getting around it ... he is at grave risk of harm.’

Phillip Boulten,SC,defence barrister

“This man was serving Australia when he was operational in Afghanistan 10 years ago. He was carrying out extremely dangerous work in a context of an armed conflict,” Boulten said.

“He was exposed every day,when he was on operational duty,to the risk of death or serious injury,and he was frontline. It’s because of his participation in these circumstances that it is said he committed this crime.”

Boulten said wherever his client is held in prison,he is likely to mix with people “who sympathise with the Taliban or other Islamic extremist groups”,raising the possibility he could be violently assaulted. He said another Army veteran had been waterboarded and carved with a blade by a fellow prisoner.

“He is extremely vulnerable,” Boulten said. “There’s no getting around it ... he is at grave risk of harm.

“There has been a policy,almost without exception,that members of his cohort of the ADF are meant to live their life under the radar.

“The interest in this case will not abate or be minimised if the newspapers have to call him Soldier C or Soldier A or whatever.”

The barrister said there was little information about the broader circumstances of the day of the alleged murder,including the information his client was acting upon,or what the soldier was thinking when he exited a helicopter and approached the alleged victim in a wheat field.

Boulten said his client was prepared to offer $1 million as security to ensure his bail,and abide by conditions including not contacting prosecution witnesses and other nominated people.

“We say that this is an exceptional case,and these are exceptional circumstances,” Boulten said.

Sean Flood,appearing for the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions,said there was “clearly a strong motivation to flee” when someone is facing life imprisonment,and suitable arrangements could be made for the man to access sensitive documents in custody.

He said there is a “big difference” between a person knowing they’re under investigation,living in hope that the situation will not progress further,and the “crunch time” of being charged.

Boulten said his instructing solicitor had sought for the ABC to voluntarily take down theFour Corners broadcast depicting the alleged crime,but had received “no response whatsoever”.

Magistrate Jennifer Atkinson will make a decision on Tuesday about the man’s bail. She will also decide if an interim court order preventing the publication of his name should be continued.

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Georgina Mitchell is a court reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.

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