Jailed drug Victorian lord Rob Karam’s long-awaited appeal underway

The man who played a key role in the 2007 tomato tins ecstasy importation is fighting his 35-year drug trafficking sentence.

Jailed underworld kingpin Rob Karam’s long-awaited appeal to fight his 35-year drug trafficking sentence has begun, with his lawyers arguing his Tomato Tins and Inca trials suffered “an abuse of process”.

The Melbourne drug lord has been fighting to overturn his conviction since 2017, claiming his case was tainted by Nicola Gobbo, also known as Lawyer X.

Karam’s barrister Julie Condon KC told the Victorian ­Supreme Court of Appeal on Monday that there was a loss of opportunity to make “forensic decisions” as Ms Gobbo’s dual role of lawyer and police informant was not known and an application for stay was not made.

“Ground one alleges an abuse of process in relation to the trials of the applicant on Inca 1, Inca 2 and Inca 3 and repeated in the Tomato Tins written case,” Ms Condon said.

The drug trafficker’s defence drew attention to nine facts and circumstances that it argues “lend themselves to no other conclusion apart from the fact the process has been fatally compromised”.

One of the key points includes a conversation between Ms Gobbo and her police handlers advising her against taking a courtroom role sitting at the bar table in Karam’s defence.

“It is unthinkable that any ­defence counsel would not have sought to make a number of ­applications seeking to first of all obtain further information about the exact nature of her role … it’s unthinkable that defence counsel would not have, in the face of that disclosure, made a fundamentally different assessment about the case,” Ms Condon said.

“But of course, none of these matters were known and mitigated.”

Purana taskforce officers arrest Rob Karam.

The Royal Commission into the Management of Police ­Informants found Ms Gobbo took advantage of her relationship with Karam, her client at the time, and provided police a ­receipt detailing an impending shipment of MDMA in tomato tins. In 2007, the drug seizure was considered to be the world’s biggest ecstasy bust, valued at $122m.

Raelene Sharp KC, for the ­respondent, rejected the abuse-of-process argument.

“In the present scenario, we don’t accept that it would have been an abuse of process … certainly there could be an application to restrain Ms Gobbo from acting but the consequence of that is … the trial will proceed ultimately it doesn’t mean the entire trial has to stop,” she said.

Melbourne lawyer Nicola Gobbo, who has been revealed as Lawyer X. Picture: ABC

“So that’s why in our submission, the abuse of process does not get made out, no permanent stay would have been granted.

“It doesn’t make the test. It would not have eliminated or substantially weakened the prosecution case. At most, Ms Gobbo may have been restrained from acting, there may be some delay in the trial, there might have been a retrial.”

Along with Karam, 33 others were arrested after a joint operation by Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police over the failed importation.

The hearing continues.