Inquiry into where Western cash went

Press, 8 July 1976, Page 6

Inquiry into where Western cash went

NZPA Sydney An inquiry was being conducted into what happened to the unrecovered proceeds of bank robberies allegedly carried out by Phillip Western, the New South Wales Premier (Mr Neville Wran) said yesterday. Western, a New Zealander, who had earlier been released on bail on two bank robbery charges, was wanted by police for questioning over the fatal shooting of a bank manager, Mr Lyn Callaghan, at Parramatta, a Sydney suburb.

Western died of gun wounds after a police riot squad had surrounded his hide-out at Avoca Beach, 70 km north of Sydney, for three days. Mr Wran has received interim reports from the Attorney-General (Mr Frank Walker) and the Police Commissioner (Mr Fred Hanson)

into the conduct of the court case when Western was released on sAustlo,ooo bail by Judge Leslie. The police officer who testified on Western’s bail application, Detective-Sergeant Walton, was on holiday on a cruise ship and would be questioned when he returned on Monday, Mr Wran said. Mr Wran said he had called for further court papers dealing with Western’s successful bail application. When all the material had been examined, if he was not satisfied that everything had been done properly, he would order a “proper” inquiry — probably by a judge. Mr Wran said he would decide whether the inquiry would be public when he knew what its terms would be. In any event, if there was an inquiry, the public would be made aware of the results.

“I am not satisfied with anything at this stage,” Mr Wran said. “The whole matter is one that leads one to be wholly dissatisfied.

“There are too many question marks over the whole thing, and the feature which is the basis for the greatest dissatisfaction is that an innocent man is now dead because someone, or more than someone, fumbled the ball in releasing Western to do what he did. “I’m not going to be fobbed off in any way and the public’s not going to be fobbed off. “A man’s life has been lost, his wife is a widow, and his children are fatherless because a maniac was let out on bail,” he said. (Western had been certified insane in New Zealand.) “Now, I’m going to establish to my satisfaction and the public’s satisfaction what were the reasons for that.”