Indigenous adviser who made death threats against exec to be removed, Chris Minns says
The man who threatened to kill senior NSW government executive Rochelle Hicks had previously boasted he would ‘smash that woman’s face in’.
Fresh allegations have emerged that an Indigenous adviser to Transport for NSW who threatened to kill senior executive Rochelle Hicks had previously boasted he would “smash that woman’s face in”, as NSW Premier Chris Minns announced the man would be removed from all future government projects.
The Weekend Australian revealed how Ian Brown, who was contracted as cultural heritage manager on the $2.2bn Coffs Harbour bypass project, said at a meeting of the Coffs Harbour Local Aboriginal Land Council in June: “If I see Rochelle I will kill her.”
Mr Brown was allowed to stay in his $165-per-hour job “because he is Aboriginal and a cultural knowledge holder”, Ms Hicks was told by her bosses, who feared the massive bypass project might be shut down if he was sacked.
Now a second senior NSW public servant has told The Australian she was present at a previous meeting of the land council in October last year, when Mr Brown made threats to harm Ms Hicks. “Ian Brown just got angry out of the blue, he went from zero to 100 and said: ‘I’m gonna smash that woman’s face in next time I see her, I’m gonna smash her’, referring to Rochelle,” said the public servant, who has asked not to be identified for fear of retribution.
“I felt really uncomfortable because I was the only woman in the room and there were five Aboriginal males and there was no attempt to pull him up by anyone in the meeting.”
The public servant says she didn’t report the comments because “those threats aren’t really taken seriously by our agencies”. “You get a lot of fluster and bluster from stakeholders, but these were threats of physical harm. It wasn’t a joke, it was said in complete seriousness and anger.”
On Monday, Mr Minns said: “Following these concerning allegations, Transport for NSW directed the LALC that he is not to be used for any further TFNSW projects. Everyone has a right to feel safe at work and the department is taking this very seriously.”
The Premier moved to distance the NSW government from the decision to allow Mr Brown to remain in his job, pointing to Mr Brown’s role as a contractor employed by the LALC.
“These roles are nominated by the council, not selected by the department,” Mr Minns said.
However, Mr Brown is specifically named in the contract between Transport for NSW and the land council to be engaged as cultural heritage site manager at a rate of $165 per hour.
Mr Brown first denied making the threat when contacted by The Australian but then claimed: “That’s just f..king words, mate … it’s just bullshit words.”
Minister for Roads Jenny Aitchison told 2GB on Monday that Transport for NSW had made “numerous attempts to engage with Ms Hicks”. However, Ms Hicks said those attempts were made only after she was seen near the Coffs Harbour bypass site last week in the company of a photographer from The Australian.
“They’re claiming now they’ve reached out to me – that’s just not true,” Ms Hicks said. “I’ve had one conversation with Performance Standards in August where they told me I’m not allowed to talk about this with anybody.”
Ms Hicks’ solicitor sent a nine-page letter to Camilla Drover, Transport for NSW deputy secretary, on September 19, detailing her complaint, and has had no substantive response since then.
On Monday, Ms Aitchison said she “understands Transport will be responding to the letter shortly”. The minister also claimed that Mr Brown had been terminated from the bypass project.
“That’s the first I’ve heard of that,” Ms Hicks told The Australian. “When did that happen? I haven’t been informed of this.”
The minister did not respond to a question from The Australian about when Mr Brown had been terminated but said “TFNSW should be doing everything it can do to assist Ms Hicks going forward and make sure that this incident is investigated”.
Ms Hicks on Monday said she now felt gaslit by Ms Aitchison’s response, on top of the ordeal she had already experienced.
“She seems to be very misinformed, and her response makes me look like a troublemaker and potentially not telling the truth when all I’m trying to do is tell the truth and get this resolved.”
Transport for NSW said in a statement Mr Brown “no longer has access to the project site”.
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