Homicide cop Justin Moynihan facing sack after internal review
After a stellar career locking up killers around the state, senior homicide detective Justin Moynihan – who led the investigation into the disappearance of William Tyrrell – has been embroiled in misconduct and harassment allegations.
NSW
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A seasoned homicide detective could be sacked after an internal investigation found he had sex in his unmarked police car while he was on duty, took photos of his genitalia in the office and pretended to be at work when he wasn’t.
Over the course of Detective Sergeant Justin Moynihan’s career, he has played a leading role in some high profile investigations, including the case of missing toddler William Tyrrell.
But it appears his 22-year career could be over following allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
Last month, Moynihan, who was a team leader at the Homicide Squad, was told some of the complaints against him had been sustained by the Professional Standards Command.
Moynihan is in the process of being served with an s181D direction pursuant to the Police Act, which allows the Commissioner to dismiss an officer if he no longer has confidence in his or her ability.
While Moynihan has 21 days to make his case to remain in the force, it is understood that he has been on leave for months and has recently been working at a private school on Sydney’s north shore.
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The Sunday Telegraph put all the allegations to Moynihan in an email this week.
While he said he “strenuously denied” having sex in his police car, he did not wish to comment on the other claims.
The Sunday Telegraph has confirmed the findings of the Professional Standards Command investigation through multiple sources.
They include that Moynihan returned home during his shifts to have sex and covered up his whereabouts in his duty log book. The internal investigation also sustained a complaint that Moynihan, while on duty, had sex with a woman in his unmarked police car.
Moynihan’s colleagues were interviewed as part of the internal probe, which also looked at damage caused to his police car during an argument with his ex-partner last year.
It is understood the behaviour occurred when Moynihan was leading the investigation into the murder of Qin Wu at a makeshift Buddhist temple in Guildford in Sydney’s west.
Police took out an apprehended violence order against Moynihan and on behalf of his partner but it was withdrawn in the Downing Centre Local Court in August.
No findings of domestic abuse or harassment were made against Moynihan. The detective has also come under fire for taking a photograph of his testicles at his desk in the open plan Homicide Squad office in Parramatta and sending it to his ex-partner.
His long absences from work formed a central part of the investigation with police auditing his car diary, duty book and phone records to discover Moynihan wasn’t always where he claimed to be.
Asked about the PSC findings, a police spokesman confirmed the internal investigation and said the officer was moved to administrative duties pending the outcome and was currently on extended leave.
Moynihan and another junior officer were also at the centre of a separate investigation into inappropriate comments and text messages targeting a murder victim’s relative at court in 2017.
According the complaint, Moynihan spoke about his sexual encounters in front of the victim’s family in the Supreme Court and was absent from the trial for long periods.
It is understood no complaints against Moynihan were sustained but the officer he was supervising was counselled for his inappropriate text messages to the victim’s family.
The revelations about Moynihan’s behaviour come after he featured prominently in a Four Corners report on the William Tyrrell investigation.
Originally published as Homicide cop Justin Moynihan facing sack after internal review