Whiskey bomber was verballed but still guilty, former journo Dennis Watt states

The man Whiskey Au Go Go bomber James Finch finally confessed all to has fronted the the inquest into the tragedy, saying the backflip from Finch’s earlier claims of innocence stunned him.

THE journalist James Finch confessed his guilt to has told a court he is convinced the convicted killer was verballed by police investigating the Whiskey Au Go Go fire.

But former reporter Dennis Watt said he also believes Finch was guilty of the deadly arson attack that claimed 15 lives.

John Stuart and James Finch were convicted of the Whiskey Au Go Go blaze in 1973 and for 15 years Finch professed his innocence, claiming he had been wrongly convicted.

His supporters, who were dubbed the Friends of Finch, campaigned for his release for more than a decade.

Gold Coast Titans chairman and former journalist Dennis Watt gave evidence of his interactions with James Finch.

But after his release and extradition back to the United Kingdom, Finch back flipped, confessing his guilt in a videotaped interview with Queensland journalist Mr Watt who flew to England for the interview.

A portion of the tape was played in the Brisbane Coroners Court on Tuesday in which Finch claims he was convinced to take part in the firebombing by Stuart, repeatedly saying: “I never had any intent in my heart to hurt anybody”.

Finch told Mr Watt he was shocked when he realised how many people had been killed in the fire.

“I just couldn’t believe it, Dennis,” he says.

“Just completely stunned and numb.”

When asked how he felt about it 15 years later, he said he felt his 15 years in jail was a small price to pay for his crime.

“I’ve never got over it that my action with these other people has led to the deaths of these 15 people,” Finch said.

Convicted Whiskey Au Go Go firebomber James Finch in front of his home in Basildon, east of London. Picture: Ella Pellegrini

“Because I went in there with no intent in my heart to hurt anybody. I was just a bloke who was used along the line.

“And often when I walk down the street I count the number 15, I look at people and I think one, two, up to 15 and I think to myself 15 years, a year for every one of those people that died is just not good and right - that anyone can sort of be involved in killing 15 people and get off with doing a year for each one.”

Mr Watt had previously reported on Finch’s proclamations of innocence and said he even contributed to his parole application.

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He told the court he was “devastated” when Finch later called him from England to confess his guilt, later telling police in a statement the revelation was akin to “a king hit between the eyes”.

“For 15 years he told us one story and then for a short period of time he told us another,” Mr Watt told the court.

Mr Watt said he had believed Finch’s claims he was innocent prior to his confession.

“It was shocking,” he said of Finch’s revelations.

“In my mind an extraordinary betrayal not just of myself, and my family and my friends, but all those good who had made extraordinary sacrifices to support him … to establish his innocence.”

James Finch’s mug shot.

The court heard prior to the taped confession, Finch had previously stuck to a “code” not to discuss the fire but was angry about the inconsistency in his treatment and that of the people who murdered Barbara McCulkin and her two daughters.

It’s been alleged Mrs McCulkin and her children were killed to stop her from revealing what she knew about the Whiskey fire.

“Finch seemed to be enraged by what he saw as inequitable treatment in that he was verballed, he had evidence fabricated against him and he could not understand why the same did not occur where people were purportedly guilty of the rape and murder of women and children,” Mr Watt said.

“He took the view their killers were given a licence so as to hide the truth, the full truth of the Whiskey Au Go Go.”

Murder victims Barbara Leanne McCulkin and Mrs Barbara McCulkin and Vicki Maree McCulkin. Picture: Supplied

Finch said during the interview with Mr Watt that his friend John Stuart had flown him to Australia from England just days before the Whiskey Au Go Go fire and that when he arrived, Stuart began pressuring him to help with the arson attack.

Finch said Stuart told him he’d be “letting him down” if he didn’t help and that he was used to do Stuart’s “dirty work”.

Finch claimed that he, along with Billy McCulkin and boxer Tom Hamilton had torched the Whiskey Au Go Go.

He said McCulkin was the driver, Finch took the fuel drums into the building and Hamilton lit the match.

In his evidence to the court, Mr Watt on Tuesday that his opinion was still “rock solid” that Finch had been verballed by police,

The court heard that in a later interview after his taped confession, Finch had turned on Watt “throwing him under the bus” in a follow up interview where he claimed he only made the confession at the suggestion of Mr Watt.

“Oh he does, but again he was staring down the barrel of possible extradition, being placed on trial for other murders he was responsible for,” Mr Watt said.

“At the end of the day … if Finch is anything he was a survivor, he would do whatever it took to survive.”

The inquest continues.

Whiskey Au Go Go Nightclub interior following firebomb.