WHISTLEBLOWER SET UP AND JAILED BY CORRUPT POLICE

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE MICK SKRIJEL CASE WHICH SHOWS NCA AND POLICE RUNNING OF AUSTRALIA'S ILLEGAL DRUG TRADE.

Some years ago, Mick Skrijel was a fisherman in SA. By accident he came across fishermen dropping large quantities of illegal drugs to Police and others. Skrijel was offered monetary incentives to become a part of the scheme. He declined the offer and instead went to more senior Police. It turned out that they were also involved in the racket.

Due to their desire to silence Skrijel he was subjected to incredible harassment, including being charged and convicted of a number of trumped up drugs charges, his fishing boat was burn't and he lost all his assets. His daughter was raped by Police.

Mick Skrijel was eventually released after his convictions were quashed by the Victorian Court of Criminal Appeal. In other words he was NOT GUILTY of any of the fabricated charges.

Skrijel also found that the Victorian Police, Department of Public Prosecutions (now called OPP) and the Ombudsman (Barry Perry) had either been involved in the illegal drug trade or had aided and abetted it's continuation. Evidence of this has since been given at a number of parliamentary inquiries and a QC contracted by the Federal Government, (David Quick) has called for a Royal Commission into the NCA and associated matters.

A gun seized from Skrijel by Victorian Police was ordered by the court to be destroyed. It was not and by accident, Skrijel now has the gun again and it is in hiding.

Mick was clearly and obviously framed by the NCA with assistance from the Commonwealth A-G's Department, the Victorian DPP (now called Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP)) and Victoria Police. David Quick's draft report shows that very clearly. But much of the key evidence referred to in the original draft was censored out of the public volume of the final report. 

For example, in a supplementary response requested by David Quick, it referred to the fact that Mick was charged with the cultivation of marijuana (127 plants weighing 225 grams - yes grams - growing in a forest clearing during the winter, 16 km from Mick's Digby Victoria property), before the circumstantial evidence that resulted in his conviction for cultivation had been found. 

The statement of Sergeant Mark Carmady indicates that Mick was taken to the Casterton Police station where he was fingerprinted, photographed, interviewed and charged on the morning of 15 October 1985. 

Senior Sergeant Huggins gave evidence at Mick's trial that he was in charge of the Crime Scene Unit; arrived at Mick's premises at 6.45 pm (he was at the clearing in the Weecurra State Forest most of the day); and subsequently entered a shed at the rear of Mick's garage where he observed a piece of tongue and grove board leaning against the internal wall of the shed (the shed contained a large pile of such timber).

He found that the piece of timber was an off-cut of a board that helped to form the base of a seed-box found at the plantation during the day. There was no other evidence linking Mick to the plantation and the NCA's Chief Investigator Carl Mengler testified that Mick's finances had been closely scrutinised and no evidence of enrichment was found. On the contrary he was found to be relatively poor.

There are literally thousands of documents supporting Mick's allegations.

To read submission 19 which details more of the Skrijel matter, NCA and police corruption in Victoria, click here...

The above case is to be documented further in a forthcoming book (due out 1st December 1998 - click here for details). 

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