ICAC’s incredible new power allegedly sparked by Jean Nassif

A corruption probe involving explosive claims made about fugitive property developer Jean Nassif is believed to be at the centre of extraordinary new powers granted to ICAC.

A corruption probe involving explosive claims made about fugitive property developer Jean Nassif is believed to be at the centre of extraordinary new powers granting the Independent Commission Against Corruption the ability to investigate illegally recorded conversations.

Attorney-General Michael Daley announced on Wednesday that the government had given ICAC the new powers after a specific request from Commissioner John Hatzistergos.

Mr Hatzistergos wrote to the government earlier this month requesting the new powers, indicating that the ICAC “has obtained certain evidence which appears to be records of private conversations made by a third-party,” Mr Daley said.

The ICAC Commissioner told the government the recordings, which may have been illegal, “are of interest to an ongoing investigation”.

Sources familiar with the matter told The Daily Telegraph that the recordings involved an investigation relating to claims made by Liberal MP Ray Williams in parliament last year.

A corruption probe involving explosive claims made about fugitive property developer Jean Nassif is believed to be at the centre of the extraordinary new powers.

Under parliamentary privilege, Mr Williams said that a number of senior NSW Liberal members had been “supported financially” by Mr Nassif.

He said a number of senior Liberals had been paid “significant funds in order to arrange to put new councillors on The Hills Shire Council who would be supportive of future Toplace development applications”.

Ray Williams made some big claims under parliamentary privilege.

Toplace rejected the accusations as “nonsensical” at the time.

The Saturday Telegraph revealed in April that the ICAC raided the homes of a number of NSW Liberal Party members in April.

The next day, the ICAC forced the Minns government to call off a parliamentary inquiry into the Hills Shire Council, because the inquiry may have impacted an active investigation.

An ICAC spokeswoman would not say what investigation the illegally recorded conversations related to.

The announcement of the new powers left MPs gobsmacked on Wednesday, amid confusion over how they could be used.

Politicians speaking on the condition of anonymity criticised the move as imposing a legal double standard, because ICAC will now be able to break the law.

The powers will expire at the end of 2025.

It is understood that the new powers specifically relate to illegal recordings already in ICAC’s possession, rather than any new recordings that they may receive.

The new powers mean that if ICAC has seized phones or laptops as part of its investigation, it will now legally be allowed to examine illegal recordings contained on those devices.

If the conversations were recorded illegally, the people who made the recordings would still be subject to prosecution.