Missing evidence in NCA bombing case includes alleged links to Mafia don ‘The Fox’

Lawyers for NCA bomber Domenic Perre know he was a Calabrian criminal, but they also know five missing pieces of evidence reveal another suspect who was a Mafia don.

Domenic Perre was a Calabrian criminal with alleged connections to the Mafia nationally, a large-scale dope grower and an angry man who didn’t like cops.

But while a lengthy submission lodged by his lawyers for his appeal agreed the 65-year-old was many things, the one thing he was not they say was a bomber.

There was a “significant possibility that an innocent person has been convicted” because there was simply no evidence to establish his guilt, barrister Andrew Tokley KC declared in a 54-page submission.

The prosecution agreed their case was wholly circumstantial leaving the verdict to be determined by a judge alone, with no jury, to consider the weight of other evidence.

The court’s ruling was always going to be challenged on appeal but Perre’s death and new material will go not just to a petition for mercy to clear his name, on behalf of his family, but raise serious questions about the investigation and the handling of evidence used to prosecute him.

Watch the special video investigation above.

Domenic Perre who was found guilty for the NCA bombing.

Andrew Tokley KC, who argues Perre is not guilty. Picture: Supplied

Central to both the Appeal and Mercy plea, before and after new evidence was discovered, was the strength of the Crown’s witnesses and evidence linked to an alternate hypothesis including that Australia’s then highest ranked Mafia don Bruno ‘The Fox’ Romeo was involved in the hit.

Bruno ‘The Fox’ Romeo, who migrated to Melbourne with his family in 1951 before settling in Griffith, NSW. Picture: Supplied

Perre’s appeal began in February 2023 but did not proceed when he died in jail less than three months later. Facing a minimum 30 years jail he would have died in custody if his appeal and possible High Court challenge were unsuccessful.

The bomb explosion at the National Crime Authority (NCA) office on the 12th floor of the CPS Credit Union building in Waymouth Street, Adelaide in 1994. Picture: Supplied

But his legal team including barristers Tokley, Gilbert Aitken, David Kelly and James Noblet were confident the verdict would have been overturned because there was so much weight of reasonable doubt over what they said in court was “inconsistencies, discrepancies and inadequacies” compounding improbabilities.

Domenic Perre with his legal team including James Noblet (left) and Gilbert Aitken (right).. Picture: NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

In brief it was accepted as fact, police did not find any chemicals at Perre’s home during eight searches prior and post the bombing, there was no evidence he knew how to make a bomb or ever purchased detonators or fuses despite the fact he was under constant police surveillance for drug offences.

Prosecution suggested he had accessed bomb making books but not only were his fingerprints not on the books when they were found but combined they still could not have instructed how to make the device.

A police replica of the parcel bomb which exploded in the NCA office presented to the Adelaide Magistrates Court in the trial of Domenic Perre. Picture: Supplied

One former prisoner claimed Perre confessed all to him but the court heard Perre was part of a highly secret society suspicious of outsiders and it was highly improbable, according to his legal team, he would confess to a “complete stranger he met in the remand centre and barely knew and took the risk of being reported to authorities”.

Two books exhibited at the NCA bombing inquest allegedly found with Domenic Perre's fingerprints on them. Picture: Supplied

But the central witness for the Crown was gunsmith Allan Chamberlain which the appeal statement claimed the court gave “very high reliance”.

Mr Tokley told the appeal court: “the specific evidence given by Mr Chamberlain allegedly inculpating (Perre) was unsupported by any independent evidence such as documents or photographs or fingerprints or that of another witness.”

Inside one of the offices destroyed by the NCA bombing on the 12th floor. Picture: Supplied

He concluded: “Mr Chamberlain is an unsafe and unreliable witness and the NCA surveillance records on the day before the bombing (1 March 1994) are inconsistent with his oral account inculpating the appellant”.

Key witness Allan Chamberlain at court. Picture: NewsWire / Dean Martin

Justice Kevin Nicholson. Picture: News Corp Australia

Mr Chamberlain told the court Perre gave him all the bomb materials including detonators in a Rabbit Photo bag for safe keeping but there was uncontested evidence the bag also contained items belonging to Mr Chamberlain. Police forensics also agreed Perre’s fingerprints were not found on the bag or on any of the contents in the bag.

Mr Chamberlain when first interviewed about the case in 1994 gave a version of events exculpating Perre but when he learned his home was being searched by police, Perre’s lawyers told court he changed his narrative.

Mr Tokley also argued the court had failed to properly consider an alternate hypothesis

Perre’s barrister Mr Aitken said unfortunately South Australian Police “had tunnel vision” during the entire 27-year investigation into the NCA and only had Perre in their sights.

Five key pieces of evidence also went missing prior to Perre trial including the NCA tapes of conversations with the Fox, surveillance logs of Perre, key telephone intercepts between Crown witnesses and a Commonwealth file.

Justice Kevin Nicholson on delivering his verdict, said the “only rational conclusion” was Perre did it and had expressed “extreme anger” to “get” someone with “a postpak (parcel) king of thing”.

“I am satisfied that Mr Perre’s responsibility, in fact, is the only rational conclusion that the circumstances established by the prosecution permit me to reach,” he said.