Adam Whittington, 60 Minutes’ chief planner of a botched kidnap scandal in Lebanon now in Sunday Night tell-all on Seven

SEVEN’S Sunday Night has denied kidnapper Adam Whittington was paid a six-figure sum for a TV tell-all about the botched 60 Mins kidnap scandal.

SUNDAY Night will air their exclusive interview with accused kidnapper Adam Whittington this weekend, with the first seven seconds of the story reportedly dedicated to his denials he was paid for the TV tell-all.

Whittington, who still faces possible jail time for his part in the bungled 60 Minutes operation to snatch back Brisbane mother Sally Falkner’s two children off a street in South Beirut in April, was bailed on $US20,000 last month and has yet to speak extensively on the scandal.

Adam Wittington with his wife Karin and son on the beach in Brisbane where they were filming for Sunday Night. Picture: Nathan Richter/INFphoto

The Channel 7 program’s executive producer Hamish Thomson told News Corp Australia, “[Adam] expressed an interest in presenting his side and said there’s been so much rumour and falsehoods about this story; but we’re not paying him a cent.”

Veteran reporter Mike Willessee has filmed the sitdown with Whittington, his wife Karin and the impact the international incident has had on their two sons, Ty and Neilson and his extended family.

Adam Wittington with his wife Karin & sons Ty & Neilson and Adam’s mother Georgina on the beach in Brisbane as they film an interview for Sunday Night. Picture: Nathan Richter/INFphoto

Adam Wittington with his wife Karin filming an interview for Sunday Night. Picture: Nathan Richter/INFphoto

Rumours circulated yesterday that Whittington had demanded between $750,000 and $1 million for any interview; after pocketing $115,000 from Nine for planning and executing the brazen child abduction bid.

Thomson, who until recently was at the helm of Nine’s now defunct current affairs program Inside Story, is understood to have first considered a pitch from Whittington on Falkner’s behalf, to do the original story but the risk and cost of the operation was knocked back by programmers.

Adam Wittington with his wife Karin with a Sunday Night crew. Picture: Nathan Richter/INFphoto

The explosive story was then taken forward by 60 Minutes senior producer, Stephen Rice, who was sacked over the international incident, and held personally responsible by Nine boss Hugh Marks for the “gravest misadventure in the program’s history.,

Rice challenged his termination in an unfair dismissal claim, which was settled with the network yesterday (the terms of which were confidential).

Adam Wittington’s mother Georgina at the Sunday Night shoot. Picture: Nathan Richter/INFphoto

Seven news and current affairs boss Craig McPherson last month told News Corp Australia his network had stayed out of the story, aghast at the drama.

“You sit back and watch, mouth agape and I don’t say that lightly ... I think they’ve been through a tough time. But it’s self-inflicted, so it’s enough for Sunday Night and Channel 7 to stay out of it,” Mr McPherson said.

60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown pictured at her office at Channel 9 on the same day a settlement has been made for her former colleague Stephen Rice who was sacked after a botched child abduction in Lebanon. Picture: Adam Taylor

While Mr Whittington was reunited with his Swedish-based family in July, Ms Falkner was forced to relinquish custody of her son, Noah and daughter, Lahela in settling civil charges brought against her estranged husband.

After his release from Mount Lebanon prison on July 24, on $US20,000 bail, Mr Whittington threatened to do more damage to Nine over the operation, stating: “The truth is coming very soon”.