Brett Forte inquest: Police partner Cath Nielsen’s explosive evidence

The police partner of Brett Forte – who was working with him on the day he was shot and killed – has given explosive evidence at the inquest into his death.

The police partner of slain officer Senior Constable Brett Forte was threatened with a “complaint form”, endured a “toxic” environment and had her gun taken away after her partner was shot and killed in an ambush, an inquest has heard.

Sen Const Forte was killed on May 29, 2017, by known criminal Ricky Maddison, following a low-speed pursuit at Seventeen Mile in the Lockyer Valley.

In explosive evidence at the inquest into Sen Const Forte’s death, Senior Constable Cath Nielsen said she was repeatedly told officers from the Tactical Action Team had no idea about reports of automatic gunfire in the area where they were shot at.

She claimed she later found out she’d been “absolutely lied to”.

Senior Constable Brett Forte died on May 29, 2017, after he was shot by Ricky Maddison. Picture: Supplied.

“(Senior Sergeant) Scott Stahlhut had told me none of them knew about gunfire,” she told the inquest.

“It became painfully obvious that it was not the case.”

Sen Const Nielsen recalled a conversation she had with Sen Sgt Scott Stahlhut.

“My question, was what did you know about automatic gunfire. Who knew what out of our office?” she said she asked him during the conversation.

“He responded to me that no one knew anything.”

Sen Const Nielsen listed multiple occasions where she claims Sen Sgt Stahlhut denied knowledge of the reports but described meeting with another colleague who told her that was not the case.

“On the 20th (of July), I went in and had another conversation. (I said) please tell me what you know … help me out here,” she said.

“(He said) Cath, we didn’t know anything.

“My time (at work) in July and August was terrible. I don’t know how I didn’t unravel.

“I knew I had to leave, which I didn’t want. That office was my connection to Bretty. I was in tears. In what world is this happening? I have done nothing wrong. I’m being threatened with a 466 (complaint form). I didn’t know what world I was in.”

Senior Constable Catherine Nielsen (centre) arrives at the Brett Forte inquest at Toowoomba Courthouse on Monday.

She said on October 31 she met with another Tactical Action Team officer, Senior Constable Andre Thaler, who she said told her they’d known.

“During that conversation it came out, yes, Scott knew about gunfire,” she told the inquest.

Barrister David Funch said: “Are you talking about reports of automatic gunfire in that area before Brett was killed?”

“Yes,” Sen Const Nielsen replied.

She said during a meeting with Ethical Standards Command, she had her firearm taken off her.

“I couldn’t understand why this snow job was being done on me,” she told the court.

“It was a toxic place for me to work with everything that was going on.”

Sen Const Nielsen defended sending an email to all tactical crime squad officers in which she said she said she was taking time off, enjoyed their support and that “we are all in this together”.

“The environment I worked in was extremely toxic,” Sen Const Nielsen said.

“There was a snow job on me.

“I was trying to play the game.

“You try being a senior constable, female, working that environment.”

Senior Sergeant Scott Stahlhut carries a cushion with Senior Constable Brett Forte citations and medals through the guard of honour following the fatal ambush.

A tearful Sen Const Nielsen denied a lawyer’s suggestion she “reconstructed” her views of what had happened on the day of the shooting after returning from a period of leave.

“I was allowed to ask questions,” she told the inquest through tears.

“My life was made a living hell for asking these questions.

“I was shit canned in the office.

“I was threatened with 466s (complaint forms). I had people saying really mean things about me. I had done nothing wrong.”

She said not only had she been dealing with the death of a close friend, “I was dealing with the shit from that office as well”.

“Don’t ever suggest to me that I made this up in my head.”

A tearful Sen Const Nielsen told the court that she was proud to be a police officer.

She had received support in the last four years but said she had also been in a toxic culture.

“Brett Forte’s death cannot be in vain,” she said.

“We have to change cultures, because this cannot happen again.”

SLAIN COP’S PARTNER QUESTIONED OVER POLICE CULTURE, SECRECY

The police partner of slain officer Senior Constable Brett Forte has become emotional as she described him as a “very ethical” man who knew the law “inside and out”.

Senior Constable Cath Nielsen is today giving evidence at the inquest into her former partner’s murder after she survived the shooting that killed him.

Sen Const Forte was killed on May 29, 2017, by known criminal Ricky Maddison, following a low-speed pursuit at Seventeen Mile in the Lockyer Valley.

Ricky Maddison shot Toowoomba police officer Brett Forte dead in 2017. Senior Constable Forte’s police partner survived and is giving evidence at the inquest into his death.

The court heard Maddison’s behaviour had become increasingly erratic in the days leading up to Sen Const Forte’s murder, with the gunman having spent two months avoiding an arrest warrant over a domestic violence matter.

The inquest heard Maddison had been calling police in Toowoomba from pay phones, telling them “youse (sic) know where I am” and “I left enough trails”.

On the afternoon of May 29, Maddison was spotted in Toowoomba and pursued by several police vehicles down the Warrego Hwy before he veered off the road.

Police followed him along Wallers Rd – a dirt road – where Maddison suddenly got out of his car and opened fire with an assault rifle.

Sen Const Forte was killed and Maddison held specialist SERT officers at bay for 20 hours before they shot him.

Sen Const Nielsen was in the passenger seat, with Sen Const Forte driving, when they were fired upon.

“VERY CAREFUL”: SHOOTER KNOWN TO HAVE GUNS

Sen Const Nielsen told the court she was acting Sergeant of the Tactical Crime Squad at the time but was not aware of the details of an investigation into Maddison’s whereabouts being conducted by the Tactical Action Team.

“In relation to the Ricky Maddison job, I was acting sergeant but I had no information in regard to that,” she said.

Sen Const Nielsen said a week before the shooting, she had only found out incidentally that SERT officers were in Toowoomba looking for Maddison.

Senior Constable Cath Nielsen has told the inquest into Brett Forte’s death that she had no knowledge of a broader investigation into shooter Ricky Maddison. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

Sen Const Nielsen told the court Sen Const Forte had made a radio call mid-pursuit warning his fellow officers to be “very careful” of Maddison because he was known to have guns.

She said he had more knowledge of Maddison through his police officer wife, Susie, who had investigated him over domestic violence allegations.

“We were aware on that particular (domestic violence) job there was a firearm used,” she said.

“So he was just relaying that information.”

She said she and Sen Const Forte became the “primary” pursuit vehicle when they hit dirt roads because they were in a 4WD.

She said she had never driven along Wallers Rd before and she was not aware of Sen Const Forte having done so.

She said the mood in their vehicle changed when they hit Wallers Rd.

“It was obvious and I got in my head, he is taking us somewhere,” she said.

“At the same time, Bretty said something similar. So we obviously both thought it at the same time.

“Definitely the mood changed.

“I made another call, where is Polair? We knew it was high risk … it was our job to do.”

When asked why she called Polair, Sen Const Nielsen said because Maddison was a dangerous offender.

“Especially, it was in farmland, there were a lot of shrubs,” she said.

“It’s always better to get poliair. It’s best practice.”

Sen Const Nielsen said it was “obvious” Maddison was taking them somewhere.

“It was farmland. It was a dirt road, you’ve got trees everywhere.”

She said they did not consider stopping the pursuit and was relying on information from communications and other areas.

“Yes he was dangerous, yes he was an armed offender,” she said.

“They are not uncommon in Toowoomba.”

Sen Const Nielsen said she had been considering a possible showdown with Maddison as they followed him along the dirt road.

She said she had considered having to use her taser and knew another police vehicle was behind to back her up should Maddison stop.

The car that Brett Forte and Cath Nielsen were travelling in. Picture: Channel 7

“He wasn’t just going to let me put the cuffs on him and walk him to the car,” she said.

Sen Const Nielsen said after 1km or so, he suddenly stopped.

“He was quick as anything,” she said.

“He got out of the vehicle and stepped out and turned that way towards us … and just started firing.

“He just got out, swung around.

“Because it was narrow and very steep and he was on top … he was shooting down at us essentially.

“I couldn’t believe it was automatic gunfire … how does that happen?”

“At the same time I’ve got my gun out and started shooting through my windscreen,” Sen Const Nielsen said.

“I continued shooting as we’ve gone down.

“Because what happened is Brett obviously got hit and that made the car swerve.

“And because where we happened to be … it was like a washout.

“That has saved my life, because it (the car) tipped on to Bretty’s side.”

Sen Const Nielsen described the efforts of her and her fellow officers smashing the windscreen of her car – while under fire – to free a terribly injured Sen Const Forte.

“The car was a mess,” she said.

“It was like something out of the streets of Beirut.

“I started smashing it from the outside. It doesn’t just smash … it was quite hard.

“It took a long time to make a hole big enough to get Bretty out.

“I pulled him back on top of me and I guess that’s when I realised the amount of blood.

“There was a bullet hole in his arm and there was no blood coming from it.”

She said at one point she said “Bretty, can you hear me?” but his “colour had changed”.

“OUR LIVES ARE WORTH IT”: MORE PROTECTION NEEDED

Sen Const Nielsen said she had suggested police should have higher-rated ballistic vests to investigators after the shooting.

“I know that would not have helped … I get that,” she said.

“But when people with weapons, it’s every day all around Toowoomba all around Queensland, we are faced with this more and more.”

Sen Const Nielsen said officers needed more protection. “Our lives are worth it,” she said.

She also raised the idea of police cars having reinforced windscreens, like the SERT-operated BearCat.

“Something like that would have given us more time to maybe get a bit more distance between us and him,” she said.

Barrister David Funch, representing Susie Forte, asked Sen Const Nielsen about the culture within the Tactical Crime Squad.

She agreed there was an “A team and B team” within the unit, with the Tactical Action Team considered the A team.

“There was a view, the culture was such that there was an A team and B team,” she said.

“The tactical team – they mainly did their own work. There was a lot of secrecy around it.

“This other side ran their own rock show.

“I understand that some jobs may need a certain level of secrecy.

“Certain people liked to have knowledge for themselves because that was their power.”

Sen Const Nielsen said she believed the decisions made around the pursuit of Maddison would have been different had they known about automatic gunfire in the area where the ambush occurred.

“If we were aware that there had been automatic gunfire … if we were aware earlier that there were direct threats (from Maddison against officers),” she said.

“We weren’t aware of a Life and Death (bikie) living down there.

“Of course it would have come into our decision making. If we’d known about automatic gunfire … we’re not stupid.”

Originally published as Brett Forte inquest: Police partner Cath Nielsen’s explosive evidence