Conman Peter Foster suing NSW Police over 2020 arrest on Queensland beach

Australia’s most notorious fraudster Peter Foster is suing NSW Police for false arrest and wrongful imprisonment over his high-profile arrest on a Queensland beach in 2020.

The high-profile arrest of conman Peter Foster on a far-north Queensland beach in 2020 was secretly organised by a senior NSW Police officer without approval from his superiors, an explosive internal police document uncovered by The Sunday Telegraph reveals.

Foster, Australia’s most notorious fraudster, is suing NSW Police for false arrest and wrongful imprisonment, thanks to the report from the Professional Standards Command which found the officer in charge of his case had issued an arrest warrant without proper approvals — and released confidential information to private investigators.

The arrest saw Foster, a conman who had been running scams since he was a young man in the late ’80s, crash-tackled to the ground by undercover cops posing as joggers on a Port Douglas beach in August 2020.

It followed an investigation by NSW Police into an alleged international sports trading scam, which Foster was accused of running.

Foster’s arrest was seen around the world thanks to a 60 Minutes film crew, who stood by recording every moment as he was taken down on the sand and handcuffed by two Queensland Police officers enforcing a NSW-issued warrant.

Peter Foster and at his home in Tamborine Mountain, Queesland. Picture: Tertius Pickard

Ken Gamble, the head of private investigation agency IFW Global, which worked with NSW Police on the case, conducted television interviews about the sting.

It can now be revealed the NSW Police officer in charge of the case, former Detective Sergeant Roland Winter, was reprimanded following Foster’s arrest and extradition to NSW, according to a heavily redacted report by the Professional Standards Command which was handed to Foster’s lawyers.

Peter Foster is arrested by detectives on a Port Douglas beach in 2020. Picture: IFW Global

The report sustains findings that Mr Winter organised Foster’s arrest and issued the warrant to capture him without getting approval from his superiors.

The Sunday Telegraph understands senior bosses at NSW Police found out that one of Australia’s most high-profile conmen had been arrested on a NSW warrant by watching it on the news.

“Phone calls started flying at a very senior level,’’ a former NSW police officer said.

“An internal investigation was launched straight away.”

The report has also shone a light on the extraordinary interactions between private investigators and NSW Police, with an investigator telling then-Det Sgt Winter on one occasion to “go slow” on the investigation until enough evidence had been gathered.

Between January and August 2020, Mr Winter improperly released confidential information to private fraud investigators, including Mr Gamble and Michael Gerondis, the report found.

Emails show Mr Gerondis, a former NSW detective and formerly Mr Winter’s boss, and Mr Gamble did significant work for Mr Winter in the investigation, even providing information for the arrest warrant.

In an email sent in June 2020 by Mr Gerondis to Mr Winter, Mr Gerondis writes; “Ciao Rolo. the foz (Foster) is cooked. Will send info for arrest warrant … I have it ready to go and will take five minutes.”

Another email in July 2020 asked the then-Det Sgt Winter to slow down the investigation into Foster.

“Socky (Ken Gamble) is playing silly B... go slow because we don’t want to punch foz (Foster) and then try and build the brief. He will have to share or I’m out and you don’t have a brief.”

Private investigator Ken Gamble. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Former Detective Sergeant Roland Winter. Pic Supplied.

The police professional standards report sustained allegations that Mr Winter “improperly released confidential police information to private investigators.”

Mr Winter was also noted in the report for leaking details of Foster’s impending arrest to the NSW Police Media Unit.

According to the report, Mr Winter “spoke with the Police Media Unit regarding the impending arrest of Foster, sending them an email with the planned details”.

The next day Foster was crash-tackled on the sand, with the report noting “a film crew from 60 Minutes was present under the guidance of Private Investigator Ken Gamble.”

NSW Police was unaware of the entire operation, including the presence of the 60 Minutes crew, which was organised by Mr Gamble.

In correspondence with NSW Police, Mr Gamble admits he made an “operational decision not to involve the NSW Police in any discussions about media involvement in this arrest as this was not appropriate under the circumstances”.

Mr Gamble claimed Queensland Police had approved of the film crew’s presence but denied telling Mr Winter about it.

“DS Winter had no idea that 60 Minutes would be present... but he was well aware of my contacts and relationship with Australian media agencies,” Mr Gamble wrote.

In correspondence seen by The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Gamble claims the NSW Police Media Unit pushed for an internal investigation because they “missed out on a high-profile arrest … and wanted to blame this on DS Winter”.

Mr Gamble denies any wrongdoing, telling The Telegraph: “Roland Winter was trying to action fraud cases but to no avail. It is one of the many failures of the NSW Police in addressing cyber crime matters which I have raised in a parliament joint committee inquiry.”

Following the arrest on the beach, Foster was extradited and charged with five counts of publishing false and misleading material to obtain advantage, 10 counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception and one count of knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime with intent to conceal.

The charges against Foster were withdrawn in May 2021 after a local Sydney court dropped them, claiming NSW Police did not have jurisdiction in the arrest.

Queensland Police then issued a warrant for Foster for the same offences, but he failed to show up in court.

Footage of the Port Douglas beach arrest was seen around the world.

He was eventually arrested in Victoria in December 2021, and is currently on bail awaiting trial where he is expected to plead not guilty.

It is alleged Foster posed as a man called William “Bill” Dawson when he launched an “online scam”, which resulted in him being transferred almost $2m in the cryptocurrency Bitcoin by a man based in Hong Kong.

It had been alleged Foster received the money in several transactions between April 2019 and January 2020, in amounts ranging between $125,961.50 and $890,187.50.

Mr Winter is no longer employed by NSW Police, and Foster is suing over the nature of his arrest.

Foster’s matter against NSW Police is listed for mention later this month.

When contacted by The Telegraph, Foster said “I have never pretended to be a model citizen, and I’ve made mistakes in my past, but this false prosecution, as documents show, was a malicious one.”

There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Mr Winter or Mr Gerondis, who were approached for comment.

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Originally published as Conman Peter Foster suing NSW Police over 2020 arrest on Queensland beach