Lawyer X royal commission: Nicola Gobbo is still no certainty to appear at royal commission
Nicola Gobbo is scheduled to begin her testimony this week, but there is disquiet among other witnesses that Gobbo will not receive the scrutiny her police handlers and other officers have received.
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Nicola Gobbo is still no certainty to appear before the royal commission into her use as a police informer.
The former gangland barrister, dubbed Lawyer X, is scheduled to begin her testimony at 9.30am Tuesday, with four half days set aside for questioning by counsel assisting the commission, Chris Winneke, QC.
Although Gobbo has received a compliance notice to give evidence before the commission, she will only spend about 15 hours answering questions due to her ailing health and child commitments.
The Herald Sun believes there is disquiet among other witnesses that Gobbo will not receive the scrutiny her police handlers and other officers have received.
The officer, who was central to her third and most significant stint as a police informer, Sandy White, answered questions over 17 gruelling days about his and his unit’s use of Gobbo to catch suspects.
But that could change.
“The amount of time allocated to Ms Gobbo is not set in stone,’’ a statement from the commission said.
“The proposed amount of time for her to give evidence is to accommodate her longstanding health concerns.”
Other concerns remain about whether the 47-year-old will leave the commission hanging on the video line.
Commissioner Margaret McMurdo, who has been firm in denying Gobbo’s attempts to be excused from testifying, intends to livestream most of her evidence, which will be given remotely.
It is expected Gobbo will be quizzed for about 12 hours on evidence already before the commission, with an emphasis on her activities leading up to and after the murders of Terence and Christine Hodson.
Her relationship with alleged corrupt police officer Paul Dale, who was charged with involvement in a burglary with his informer, Terence Hodson and, later, accused of his murder, will be a focus.
It is also certain Gobbo will be asked if she ever told police that Mark Perry, a suspect in the 2003 killing of “vampire gigolo” Shane Chartres-Abbott, ever confessed to her.
There are suspicions the statement was either forged or altered by a Briars taskforce officer to get a warrant to bug Mr Perry’s phone.
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If Gobbo does not comply with the commissioner’s order to appear without a reasonable excuse, she could face jail if the matter is referred to a prosecution body.
Witnesses expected to follow her include former chief commissioner Ken Lay, retired homicide detective Ron Iddles and current and former assistant commissioners Steve Fontana and Dannye Moloney.