Lawyer X’s involvement in Mokbel’s extradition a central focus in his freedom plea
Nicola Gobbo’s role in Tony Mokbel’s extradition from Greece will be key battleground in the drug tsar’s bid to be released from jail.
Police & Courts
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Drug tsar Tony Mokbel wants to avoid “another royal commission’’ to establish the facts in his appeal case as he makes a bid to be freed from jail.
A directions hearing on Friday before Court of Appeal president Chris Maxwell was told Mokbel had supplied a statement of facts in February.
But it was met with a starkly different version of events by his prosecutors last week.
Mokbel’s lawyer Ruth Shann told the court the parties were a long way apart.
During the hour-long hearing Justice Maxwell read out a sample of the numerous facts in dispute.
He suggested face-to-face “engagement’’ to narrow the gap before a trial to settle the disputed facts.
“If the factual convass stays as is it’s going to be a lengthy trial,’’ President Maxwell said.
Crown prosecutor Brendan Kissane QC said the facts needed teasing out.
“I do think it is likely a large number of these matters are going to require findings,’’ he said.
“The evidence is complex, the timeline is complex.
“It’s a lengthy timeline that is complicated and there’s every likelihood we will need a trial to tease all these facts out.’’
Police information reports, the court heard, run to 20,000 pages.
A key battleground for Mokbel, who watched the proceeding on a video link from Barwon Prison, will be how his lawyer, Nicola Gobbo, who had turned secret police informer against him, impacted his extradition from Greece in 2008.
But he is also going to contend Gobbo impacted his ultimate guilty pleas to a range of major drug trafficking offences for which he was sentenced to 22 years in jail.
Mokbel’s lawyers also reminded the court of ongoing delays in document disclosure.
The gangland figure is seeking more information about payments and other inducements given to witnesses who gave evidence against him.
But he has also requested disclosure about the knowledge the Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) had about Gobbo’s informer role in the lead up to his guilty plea and his appeal.
The court was adjourned until May 21.
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