Ben Roberts-Smith

Lawyers for three witnesses testifying on behalf of Ben Roberts-Smith in his defamation case sent invoices to Seven West Media, but chairman Kerry Stokes ...

Roberts-Smith is suing the newspapers over articles in 2018 he says portray him as a war criminal involved in unlawful killing of Afghan prisoners. It is not uncommon for parties to a legal action to assist witnesses with their costs. Last year, The Age and Herald revealed Seven West Media had loaned Roberts-Smith $1.87 million of company funds for his private legal expenses. He denies all wrongdoing and says any killings were lawful and in the heat of battle. The newspapers allege that Roberts-Smith directed a rookie soldier to kill an unarmed Afghan prisoner in 2009, and that Person 5, who cannot be named for national security reasons, ordered the killing. Soon after, he was contacted by solicitor Justine Munsie from Addisons lawyers.

A former SAS soldier has told a Federal Court trial he never colluded with Ben Roberts-Smith in order to lie about alleged war crimes of murder in ...

Person Five on Thursday said he warned Mr Roberts-Smith that the probe into Afghanistan by the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force was a witch hunt that he should prepare for. The former Royal Marine said he was disappointed to read “lies” surface in 2018 media reports after his comrades spoke to journalists. This was said to “blood the rookie” in order for the fresh soldier to get his first kill.

A former SAS patrol commander tells the Federal Court that he only found out this week that Mr Roberts-Smith's employer, billionaire businessman Kerry ...

Person 5 said that the wife of a different colleague who was also on that mission, Person 4, approached him at a troop function sometime in 2011 to "chest poke" him about why her husband also deserved to be recognised. "The military was in a bit of a spin about it because they'd just announced they were awarding this guy the Victoria Cross," Person 5 said. Person 5 said "the majority" of the document's contents were "in the media anyway", including allegations that a rookie soldier had been "blooded" by executing an unarmed Afghan man. "I wanted to complain about the treatment and that was the avenue I took." The court heard after Person 5 moved to the United States in 2018, he emailed Mr Roberts-Smith a document complaining about his treatment at the IGADF inquiry, referring to it as an "interrogation". "I told him to prepare himself, it was a witch-hunt," Person 5 said.

The man known as Person 5 was on the stand in the defamation battle with Nine Newspapers today.

that if either of you changes your position and confesses to any of those murders, it will make the position of the other impossibly difficult?" The retired soldier rejected accusations he left the military because of the official inquiry into the Afghanistan war, although he admitted to warning Roberts-Smith about the probe, which he described as a "witch-hunt". The man, known under the alias of Person 5, was on the stand for a second day, denying accusations he was giving false evidence to stop any potential future criminal prosecutions.

A key witness for Ben Roberts-Smith has denied “colluding” with the veteran over an Afghanistan mission, as it's revealed Seven is footing the man's legal ...

The court heard Person 5’s legal fees alone had cost $65,000 so far, and that combined with those of two other witnesses, Seven was in for a bill for nearly $170,000. The court heard Person 5 and Mr Roberts-Smith spoke on the phone shortly after Person 5 had been interviewed by Inspector General staff. Nine newspapers have alleged Person 5, a key witness for Mr Roberts-Smith, ordered a subordinate to carry out one of the killings and that Mr Roberts-Smith killed the other Afghan.

Legal fees for three witnesses in profile defamation trial were reimbursed by private company of Seven chairman.

The Seven network is owned by billionaire Stokes, who is footing the legal bill for Roberts-Smith, the general manager of 7Queensland and Seven Brisbane before he stepped down to focus on the trial 12 months ago. Seven was billed for three witnesses amounting to $170,000 in legal costs, however the network confirmed the fees were being “reimbursed” by another arm of the Kerry Stokes empire. A former SAS soldier who is a witness in the Ben Roberts-Smith defamation trial has told the federal court his legal fees are being paid by the Seven network.

A former SAS soldier and friend of Ben Roberts-Smith has denied colluding with the Victoria Cross recipient in...