‘Surprised’ Zachary Rolfe to fight NT police sacking

Police officer Zachary Rolfe, who was found not guilty of murdering an Indigenous man, has been formally dismissed by the Northern Territory police.

Zachary Rolfe. Picture: (A)manda Parkinson

Police officer Zachary Rolfe, who was found not guilty of murdering an Indigenous man during a botched ­arrest in the outback, has been formally dismissed by the Northern Territory police.

Mr Rolfe, who is on leave overseas, has said through his lawyer he will fight the decision.

It comes a year after he was found not guilty of murdering Kumanjayi Walker, 19, at the remote community of Yuendumu after Walker had stabbed him with scissors.

The NT police served Mr Rolfe with a section 78 dismissal notice last Thursday and a termination notice on Tuesday.

Mr Rolfe’s lawyer, Luke Officer, on Tuesday evening said his client would fight the move to sack him. “Constable Rolfe’s intention is to appeal the decision and exercise the full legal options available to him challenging the validity of the decision, the failure to afford fairness and the process by which it was made, the lawfulness of the decision, and the merits of the decision,” he said. “In those circumstances, I provide no further comment at this time.”

It is understood a 2500-word open letter written by Mr Rolfe and given to the media criticising the NT police is the main reason behind his dismissal.

Mr Rolfe’s father said his son was “surprised” police had dismissed him. “I don’t think anyone from the NT Police Force had actually even spoken to him about the letter which has been attributed to him,” he said. “Despite attempts to make a big song and dance about the essay on the first day of the restarted coronial inquest (into Walker’s death), they completely dropped any interest in it.”

According to a statement obtained by The Australian, the NT Police Force confirmed Mr Rolfe was no longer a serving member.

It comes as the NT government asked police commissioner Jamie Chalker to stand down amid an escalation of youth crime and alcohol-related violence in the NT. His handling of Walker’s death has also been widely criticised within the force.