AWU raids: Michaelia Cash ex-aide told Justice Minister’s staffer, both tipped off media

Michaelia Cash’s former media adviser David De Garis says he gave advance notice of AWU raids to Justice Minister staffer and both tipped off media.

David de Garis, Michaelia Cash's former media adviser leaves Federal Court in Melbourne. Picture: David Geraghty.

Michaelia Cash’s former media adviser David De Garis has revealed he gave advance notice of raids on the Australian Workers’ Union to a staffer with Justice Minister Michael Keenan and they both tipped off media ahead of the raids.

Mr De Garis told the Federal Court today he contacted a media adviser in Mr Keenan’s office, Michael Tetlow, after he was told about the imminent raids by Senator Cash’s chief of staff, Ben Davies.

After they discussed how to disseminate the information to the media, Mr De Garis said he contacted newspaper reporters and Mr Tetlow contacted television journalists to tell them about the raids later that day.

Mr De Garis said he telephoned journalists from The Australian, The Daily Telegraph and Fairfax. Under questioning from AWU lawyer Herman Borenstein, he named The Australian’s Geoff Chambers as the journalist he telephoned. He was not asked to identify the other journalists he contacted.

In earlier evidence this morning, Mr De Garis said he took into account the impact on Bill Shorten’s reputation when he decided to leak news of raids to the media.

“It would have been at least part of my thinking, I am sure,” he told court.

The hearing continues