Roger Rogerson: Glen McNamara claims ex-cop confessed to murder
The co-accused of notorious former detective Roger Rogerson says he was terrified of him because the ex-cop confided that he had committed several murders.
Police & Courts
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Glen McNamara claimed Roger Rogerson confided in him that he had murdered multiple people and was behind the attempted hit on undercover cop Mick Drury in 1984.
McNamara claims the confession explains why he was so scared of Rogerson that he helped him get rid of a dead body, yet the explosive claims were kept from the jury at their murder trial.
Notorious former detectives Rogerson and McNamara are each appealing their convictions for murdering 21-year-old drug dealer Jamie Gao in a Padstow storage locker on May 20, 2014.
McNamara claims Rogerson shot Gao in locker number 803 when Gao came at him with a knife during what a trial ultimately found was a deadly drug rip off in which Gao delivered nearly 3kg of methamphetamine to the former officers.
In the 2016 trial, McNamara claimed Rogerson shot Gao then pointed the gun at his head saying “help me with him or else you’ll be lying on the ground next to that c***”.
“He’s going in the white wagon, we’re going to your place because I’m going to see your lovely (family)”.
Paralysed with fear that Rogerson would kill him and his relatives, McNamara said he obliged in helping Rogerson dump Gao’s body at sea.
McNamara’s two barristers argued their client should have been allowed to tell the jury about a further encounter he had with Rogerson in February 2014 but the trial judge ruled it inadmissible.
“Rogerson told him he had effectively been directly involved in the murder of a number of people and the attempted murder of Mr Drury,” barrister Stephen Odgers told the Court of Criminal Appeal.
McNamara’s other barrister Gabriel Wendler said his client was deprived the opportunity to explain why he took Rogerson’s threats to kill him so seriously.
“In his explanation he couldn’t say … ‘I behaved this way because I had been told by this man he had been involved in all these other murders’,” Mr Wendler said.
Rogerson’s argument in the appeal is that it was is McNamara who carried out the murder.
Rogerson claims he was only at the scene that day because he agreed to drive around the storage business on the lookout for possible members of the Triads crime gang, while McNamara met with Gao.
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He claims McNamara told him Gao was concerned about Triads.
Mr Stratton said Rogerson’s decision to drive his own car to the lockup that day was inconsistent with the Crown’s case he was part of a well-planned murder, because the car would obviously link him to the scene.
“It’s not conceivable the appellant Rogerson would not have thought through that very basic flaw,” Mr Stratton said.
“Even the simplest armed robber would have thought that through.”
Justice Robert Hulme – one of three judges hearing the appeals - said not every premeditated crime was “skilfully and intelligently thought through”.
“Sometimes people of reasonable intelligence do some pretty stupid things,” he said.