Appoche Production.

Thanks for your support of this podcast and the hundreds and thousands of downloads to already had.

We can see that the show has listeners right across Australia.

Not surprisingly, Tasmania has a higher than normal number, as does Canberra.

We're also thankful for the support we're getting from news media and also anonymous sources who are coming forward via every channel.

These are people that worked inside the police department with Reynolds, some are people who believe there's a wider issue in Tasmania, and some just want to offer their support in any way they can.

Most want to stay anonymous.

Hi, I have been following your podcast.

I'm may be willing to assist you in this matter with some of what I know.

However, at this present time I am not willing to divulge my identity due to the risk that attaches to.

The reaching out following up on the message I sent you on Instagram.

Hij Tasmania has a shameful history, but the case of a twelve year old being used as a trick.

The best way to share information with us is at our secure email address, which is at podshape at proton dot me.

That's podshape at proton dot me.

I've also placed a link to that in the show notes and just at the outset.

I want to say at the end of episode six, we gave you a t ease into what we'd be talking about in episode seven.

That's still happening, however we've had to delay it by a couple of weeks.

In November of twenty twenty five, just days after we published our first episode of Badger Portrayal, we were alerted to a Canbra law firm who were looking for anyone that's been affected by Reynolds offending.

It's not a class action, but they are looking to see if anyone that was a victim survivor of Reynolds could be entitled to compensation around pain and suffering, past lost earnings and future earning capacity loss, plus any medical treatment or care that may have been sought or might be needed in the future.

They list the failings of Tasmania Police around the Reynolds matter, which were outlined in the Waste Report.

The key areas of concern of what we've also raised, firstly around that original two thousand and eight complaint, where concerns raised about reynolds behavior around teenage boys were reported internally with TASPOLE, the matter was closed without proper investigation.

The report found there were no internal police cover ups, but officers who investigated a two thousand and eight complaint prioritized Reynold's reputation over the safety of children.

The now police commissioner was the one to refer the complaint for investigation.

Mom devastated and I think it's probably had a more of an emotional impact because of the report I made in two thousand and eight.

I feel very disappointed.

Yeah, it's my job to make this right.

The second is around the twenty eighteen investigation, which, after the search of his property and evidence was seized, Reynolds took his own life and the investigation into his offending stopped.

And finally there's the police funeral and the guard of honor.

Despite the seriousness of the allegations known within TASPOLE, it went ahead.

Members of the public should be able to walk up to place at any time of the day with their kids and feel comfortable.

And I think some of our members may feel as though that bond has perhaps broken.

Outside of just financial compensation, these lawyers say that you may also seek a personal response or an apology We've placed the link to this law in our show notes.

We've also reached out to them to see if they wanted to chat more on the show.

The Weese report into Reynolds made seven referrals to TASPOLE.

Now we're unable to tell you who these referrals relate to.

They are not public.

However, through our various sources and whistleblowers, we know who most of them are.

That still prevents us from telling you their names.

But the overview is that seven referrals were made to Tasmanian Police that relate to other former or serving officers.

From the Weese report, it states.

There is no evidence of any sexual offending involving a child by any current serving police officer.

It also says another referral.

Was made to an external organization in relation to a person who is not a police officer.

As part of these referrals, TASPOLE must publish the current status of these investigations.

In December of twenty twenty five, they did that to outline what that table of investigation looks like.

It lists the date of the alleged defense if TASPOLE were aware of the allegations prior to it being referred to the WEICE inquiry and if the officer is currently still serving and the status of the investigation.

What is interesting is that amongst these seven referrals, TASPOLE was aware of five of them prior to them being referred in twenty twenty four.

Of the seven referrals, two of them have already been cleared.

One wasn't to do with child sexual abuse, the other was an allegation of failure to report child sexual abuse.

All of these seven referrals are former police officers.

Now we've launched a right to information with TASPOLE to find out when they are aware of these five allegations before they were referred by the WEICE report and what the status of these allegations were prior to that report.

Currently there are two active investigations.

One of those is around the allegations around Dale Cook, which we told you about in an earlier episode.

A reminder that right now these are allegations only and the matter is before the court.

What we can tell you is the facts around the current investigation.

Cook was arrested and charged by the Tasmanian Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team, which comprises members of Tasmania Police and the Australian Federal Police.

After mister Cook's first appearance, Commissioner Donna Adams announced an investigation of his entire career to determine whether there had been any other offending or misconduct during his time with Tasmania Police.

The question that has been posed to me via various whistleblowers is did Cook and Reynolds know each other?

To be honest?

I'm unsure and even if they did, that doesn't really mean anything.

Cook has not been convicted of anything, and two cops knowing each other in Tasmania isn't unusual.

To give that some context From the TASPOL annual report, in the Northern District where both worked, there are about one hundred and fifty seven thousand people and one police officer for every one point six people, so roughly, in estimates, about three hundred police positions are in the north of the state of Tasmania.

They run across COIB, drugs and firearms, forensics, the Prosecution Service, road police and youth crime intervention.

But based on the information we have from posting records, Cook and Reynolds were both serving within the lonsestn Northern Districts environment during overlapping periods, although in different roles.

To highlight that point, we have a photo of Reynolds when he was an inspector standing in a pr choot for an event that was being held in Lonceston called Festival.

In that photo, along with eight other officers, is Sergeant dale Cook.

That photo is from February tenth, twenty eleven, from the Tasmanian Examiner.

He's an excerpt from the article that was alongside the photo.

We've used a voice actor to read this part.

Police are expecting Festive, our patrons to behave themselves while enjoying the large scale social event.

It should be a great weekend, Northern District Uniform Inspector Paul Reynolds said, But at the same time, it's important we send a clear message that antisocial behavior, including drink driving, will not be tolerated.

Inspector Reynolds said an additional thirty police officers would be rostered on over the weekend to ensure people adhere to the message.

Another reminder, Dale Cook has not been found guilty of any crime and we're not alleging anything to the contrary.

However, in the public interest, we feel it's important to bring some of these things to light.

As we head back to that table that outlines the seven referrals that were made to Taspole from the WEICE report, Line five the document shows another interesting entry.

These allegations stem from a police officer accused of sexual abuse between the nineteen seventies and the nineteen eighties.

The status of this allegation is that the police officer is deceased.

Now we've reached out with another RTI to ours details on this entry.

We don't believe this has been reported on todate, and we also don't believe this is Reynolds, as he was already dead before the WEICE inquiry.

This table doesn't show the only allegations of police officers and child sexual abuse allegations.

In August of twenty twenty five, a former police officer and Mormon church leader pleaded not guilty to allegations that he sexually abused multiple young people from a church across two decades.

Recently, he was extradited from Queensland to face charges following an investigation by Task Force Artemis.

These charges date back from nineteen sixty three to nineteen eighty two.

Those dates don't correspond to the dates in the seven referrals.

However, the charges currently against this man don't alleged that he did this alleged defending while he was an officer.

And then there's another allegation, this time around a seventy four year old ex Tasmanian Police sergeant.

Detectives from Tasmania have traveled to Queensland to charge a seventy four year old former police sergeant with child sex offenses.

The charge relates to abuse allegedly committed in the nineteen eighties when the man was a serving Tasmania police officer.

That does line up with the seven referrals mentioned earlier.

And then, of course there's the Ashley Detention Center worker that was mentioned in the last episode who's currently before the courts on eleven counts of rate, three counts of indecent assault, two counts of indecency which relate to three victim survivors.

These date back from nineteen seventy four through to twenty twenty one.

This was following an investigation by Task Force Artaba.

That name task Force Artemis has come up multiple times in our research.

So what are they?

Who leads them?

Well, Task Force Artemist is a specialist Investigative Task Force within the Tasmanian Police established to investigate historical child sexual abuse and related serious offenses in Tasmania.

It was created in direct response to the Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry into child sexual abuse in institutional settings, and you can hear it's doing some good work.

Details of who leads it are not publicly available, but from our research is most likely led by a senior detective at either inspector or superintendent level.

They are part of TASPOL and report into the Deputy Commissioner and ultimately the Commissioner.

Now I know it might seem across the last seven episodes that we are smashing the police in Tasmania, but as we've learned, there are some very good cops in Tazi, cops who want the truth to come out and for the force to be cleaned up.

They are calling for an independent Royal commission into TASPOLE.

They are willing to risk it all like our current serving police officer in the Tasmanian Police.

A Commission of Inquiry also have the powers to force people to produce documents, to bring forward any evidence, and can prosecute people for lying or misleading.

A Commission of inquiry or failing to comply with providing evidence if they're aware of it.

An investigation conducted by Weese had zero powers and people.

There are a number of people according to what Regina Weese has also said and put in her report, where people elected not to participate.

I think she spoke to everyone that was nominated.

What she didn't say, though, was that everyone that was nominated elected to volunteer really participate in an interview.

Do you think there needs to be a commission of inquiry into Renalds Yes.

The scope of offending was horrendous that came out in the weeks inquiry.

I can only imagine that a properly formed commission of Inquiry, with the protections that it gives and the coercive powers that it has to be able to force people to participate, would uncover a greater scale of offending.

It would get to the heart of how the system broke down so much and allowed this offending to go on for so long, and what were the failings by Tasmanian Police and the people inside Tasmanian Police that had the power back from two thousand and eight onwards to intervene.

There was a substantial I mean proven substantial pedophile behavior by Reynolds over twenty five years.

I'm aware of at least two other current investigations involving offending of not dissimilar nature with people that would have been friends with Reynolds police officers now ex police officers, but one has recently been resigned after being found in possession of child exploitation material.

According to Tasmania Police's own media, thing was a poster child for youth advocacy and he was in positions where he was clearly in contact with youth.

He I'm also aware of a matter that had been under investigation for at least five years now and has in my view been slowed down to avoid the proximity of it being close to the Reynolds matter for inexplicable and probably inappropriate means.

That person was a police officer, left policing as a result of being involved in criminal activity, then became We're subject to ongoing allegations of inappropriate behavior sexual behavior, and that matter is under current investigation and hasn't been completed in a number of years, and I think it's been stored deliberately to avoid it coming out because it would be in my view, it would be this straw that breaks the camel's back and would cause a commission of inquiry.

It's clear we've seen with Ashley Detention Center, We've seen with the Lorncessant General Hospital.

We're talking schools, government hospitals, prisons, youth set YEP.

So the two officers I just talked about worked in the Northern District with Renolds, and they all worked in a youth justice field and prosecutions and were very strongly related to all the people that worked in those youth areas.

Why is this important to you, to.

Be honest with you, I get sick of going to things like barbecues where people are asking questions around that's a bit dodgy and just reflects on every police officer.

I think there's a personal pride here, but I also think more deep than that, it's really about I joined policing to help people and those people need help.

I actually still believe that.

And we spend, as government, police, health, whatever, spend millions of dollars on all these pursuits of all these different things.

We need to be better.

We need to prevent these things from actually being cold cases, or we need to prevent these things from actually becoming horrendous cases like Reynolds or Griffin, all those type of things.

There's got to be some pride in here.

Police are there and the confidence.

Police can only operate with the confidence and trust that the public give them.

Police are not infallible.

This is not about police having to be perfect.

It's not about police having to be something superhuman.

But it's about having standards.

It's about having processes that avoid these types of things becoming big issues, because that's where the ablic lose confidence in policing.

And they should, I think please should be on the front foot.

If someone's not happy with an inquiry, let's do more.

Let's talk to them more, let's help them understand more.

It may not change results, but it can avoid some of the things we're doing.

You know, it doesn't matter whether I believe someone's guilty or not guilty of it's at the end of the day, the evidence is the evidence, and we just need to be able to talk that through.

If we can't convince people, and some people will never be convinced.

But if we can't convince people, then we can't retain the trust of people.

If we can't retain the trust of people.

We can't retain their confidence and therefore police will just continue to be a harder and harder job.

And I don't know about others, but you know, I think we live in a pretty good state in Tasmania and police have a pretty good reputation.

But that won't last if we can't get these things right.

I want to wrap up this episode with a message that was sent to one of the Westbrook family who have suffered the unimaginable loss of their little Edy, the police say took her own life over ten years ago.

This was sent via social media.

We've used a voice actor to read the message.

Good afternoon, Sky.

Apologies for backdooring you on social media.

Firstly, onwards and upwards on the investigation into your beautiful sister.

I wish you and your family success.

Secondly, I am a former Tasmania Police officer badge number of twelve years working on I have been listening to our little Edie and have started on badge of betrayal.

I fully believe that your beautiful sister was taken by the hands of others.

My main reason for contact is to pass a short message onto your family.

I, like hundreds of other police officers were completely unaware of the monster that Reynolds was.

This was so deeply seated within certain ranks.

It was only after his funeral that we began to hear of his character and crimes.

We are sickened and angered to think we attended his funeral and feel betrayed by the department.

I on behalf of myself and those who did not know offer our sincere apologies from behind the good side of the badge, and wish you all love, light and answers to your requests.

Arms around your hearts, Regards.

For victims of Reynolds, people in the community and Tasmania Police who feel utterly betrayed.

There has to be a reckoning.

And just before we finished this episode some breaking news just as we were about to hit publish it as an announcement from the Tasmanian government and the Attorney General, Guy Barnett.

This article was written by David Killick from the Tasmani Mercury newspaper.

Here is his article read by Another Voice.

A bill to reform the state's integrity framework has been released for public comment.

The Draft Integrity Commission Amendment Bill twenty twenty six proposes reforms including implementing thirty three recommendations from the twenty sixteen Cox Review, and makes operational improvements identified by the Integrity Commission.

It also supports the findings of the independent Weiss review into former police officer Paul Reynolds, an accused serial pedophile who took his own life in twenty eighteen.

Attorney General Guy Barnett said the government wanted a robust and transparent integrity system.

The proposed changes aimed to streamline procedures, clarify powers, enhance procedural fairness, and strengthen processes and safeguards around the Integrity Commission's investigative functions.

We are delivering on our commitment to progress integrity reforms, building on the Integrity Amendment Bill twenty twenty five, which has already been introduced to Parliament.

This is an important opportunity for Tasmanians to have their say on reforms that will strengthen integrity and public trust in our institutions.

This bill proposes implementing a large number of recommendations of the Cox Review, so it is important that we undertake extensive consultation to ensure that proposed reforms will work as intended and enhance the integrity framework for Tasmania.

We've placed a link to the Justice Department website which is open for public comment in the show notes.

Looking at the online article from David Killick and the comments below it, they echo the same thought and the question why has it taken ten years for this to be considered.

It's not lost on anyone looking into the wider systemic issues within Tasmania that all the recent noise around Reynolds in Westbrook, so Neil Fraser, James Griffin and many more, that this might just be a positive step in the right direction.