SAS soldier accused of ‘lying’ after telling court Ben Roberts-Smith involved in two war crime killings

A soldier who said Ben Roberts-Smith shot one Afghan prisoner and ordered the killing of another accused of lying in court.

Ben Roberts-Smith’s lawyers have accused his former SAS squadmate of “lying” and asked whether he “enjoys killing people” after the top-secret witness accused Mr Roberts-Smith of involvement in two alleged war crime murders.

The unnamed SAS soldier, who remains in active service, told the court Mr Roberts-Smith had shot one Afghan prisoner with a short burst of machine gun fire during a raid on a Taliban compound known as Whiskey 108.

The SAS witness, known in court as Person 41, claimed Mr Roberts-Smith had ordered a junior soldier shoot another detained Afghan at point blank range in a courtyard just a few minutes earlier in the 2009 raid.

Mr Roberts-Smith denies those accusations and is suing Nine newspapers for defamation saying they falsely portrayed him as a war criminal.

His lawyers had a chance to cross-examine Nine’s first SAS witness in the Federal Court trial on Thursday morning.

Barrister Arthur Moses SC spent the day questioning Person 41’s recollections, memories and claims of the Whiskey 108 raid.

: Ben Roberts-Smith lawyers including Arthur Moses pictured (centre) as they arrive at Federal court in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw

He accused the SAS soldier of lying about details including when Person 41 claimed another soldier had called out in English as they searched for Taliban in Whiskey 108.

“You’re just making this up aren’t you? You’re lying,” Mr Moses said.

“I’m not lying,” Person 41 said.

Person 41 said he never reported the Whiskey 108 killings because he wanted to “tow the line” and has claimed speaking out in the SAS could unravel a soldier’s career.

“The reason you didn’t report (the killings) to your patrol commander is that it didn’t happen,” Mr Moses said.

“That’s incorrect - I know what I saw,” The SAS witness replied.

The SAS witness agreed with Mr Moses that he felt guilt and shame following the events of Whiskey 108.

But he disagreed he felt like a “coward” because he didn’t stop the alleged murders.

“I was happy to put it in the back of my memory and carry on with the rest of my life,” the SAS witness said.

The SAS witness agreed he’d have flashbacks or memories just a few times a year until newspapers and the Inspector General of the Australian Defence Force began investigating and reporting on the allegations of SAS war crimes.

Then the memories increased - he is now diagnosed with anxiety in part because of the court case, the SAS soldier told Justice Anthony Besanko.

Mr Moses has highlighted contradictions between the versions of the events put forward by the SAS witness and Nine’s court documents.

Specifically, Nine does not claim Mr Roberts-Smith ordered the killing of the detained Afghan - rather the newspapers claim he did not intervene to stop the alleged murder.

Photographs taken by the SAS during the raid on Whiskey 108. Picture: Federal Court of Australia

The SAS witness claimed Mr Roberts-Smith had marched the detainee over to a soldier known as Person 4, kicked the elderly Afghan in the legs to make him kneel and then instructed his squadmate to “shoot him”.

The SAS witness told the court Person 4 had borrowed his suppressor to shoot the Afghan in the head and he had stepped out of the room while the detainee was killed.

Nine alleges a soldier known as Person 5 ordered the killing - but the SAS witness did not identify Person 5 as being present in the courtyard.

Mr Roberts-Smith has totally denied he ordered the shooting which has come to be known as the “blooding of the rookie”.

It’s not disputed Mr Roberts-Smith shot the second man at Whiskey 108 but the Victoria Cross recipient said the man was armed and moving quickly outside the compound.

He flatly denies machine gunning the man while he lay on the ground unarmed, as alleged by both Nine and the SAS witness.

The man had a prosthetic leg which was taken back to the SAS base and displayed in a make-shift pub known as the Fat Ladies Arms.

Many of the SAS soldiers, including Person 41, drank from the leg which became a trophy, the court has heard.

The SAS witness said he began to feel shame about drinking from the leg once it emerged in the press because it wasn’t the right thing to do.

Mr Moses asked Person 41 about whether the media reports had brought back “bad memories” but the SAS witness said he had only good memories of his time in Afghanistan.

“You enjoyed killing people?” Mr Moses asked.

“I wouldn’t say I enjoy it - but it’s part of my job,” Person 41 replied.

The trial continues.