Brittany Higgins has responded after a senior detective involved in her rape investigation was suspended from duty over allegations of covering up an unrelated case.
The lead detective, Senior Constable Trent Madders, has been charged with perjury, perverting the course of justice and concealing evidence in an unrelated case involving a former AFP officer. news.com.au reported.
Madders, who has previously denied wrongdoing, was one of the detectives who originally investigated Higgins’ allegation that she was raped by colleague Bruce Lehrmann on a government minister’s sofa after a night out in Canberra in 2019.
Reacting to the news that Madders had been suspended, Higgins shared three upside-down emojis on Instagram, which are often used to convey disbelief, irritation or frustrated resignation.
There is no suggestion that Mr Madders has committed any offence in relation to Ms Higgins’ case.
The charges he is reportedly facing are related to an investigation into twin brothers who were convicted of spying on three female tenants using hidden cameras in their bedrooms in 2019.
Australian Federal Police officer Joshua Rod Tiffen and his electrician brother Kenan Lee Tiffen were found guilty in April 2022 of three counts of capturing visual data in an indecent invasion of privacy.
Brittany Higgins (pictured) has responded after a senior detective involved in her rape investigation was suspended from duty over allegations of covering up an unrelated case.
Detective Chief Constable Trent Madders has been charged with perjury, perverting the course of justice and concealing evidence in an unrelated case involving a former AFP officer. Ms Higgins’ reaction is shown in the image above.
However, they pleaded not guilty and their case is subject to appeal.
Mr Madders, who worked on the investigation, is accused of making a false affidavit in a court proceeding “with the intent to secure the conviction or acquittal of another person for a crime” between August 5 and 6, 2020, the court said. Riot act.
He is also charged with concealing evidence “with intent to influence the outcome of a judicial proceeding” sometime between June 12, 2019, and August 6, 2020.
His case was listed for mention in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday, where Mr Madders’ lawyer requested the matter be adjourned for three weeks.
No plea was entered and the case will return to court on August 1.
He had previously reportedly rejected allegations that he had participated in a cover-up.
An AFP spokesman said: “An AFP employee has been charged with perjury and offences related to the administration of justice.”
Lead detective, Senior Constable Trent Madders (pictured), was one of the detectives who originally investigated Ms Higgins’ complaint that she was raped by her colleague Bruce Lehrmann.
“The employee, who was reported to the AFP’s Professional Standards Department, has been suspended from his duties,” the spokesman added.
Mr Madders provided a statement about his involvement in Ms Higgins’ rape investigation to a board of inquiry examining the ACT’s criminal justice system last year.
The inquiry board’s report, authored by Walter Sofronoff KC, praised the conduct of the police, including Mr Madders.
The officers were found to have “performed their duties in absolute good faith, with great determination despite facing obstacles, and had built a strong case.”
An interview Mr Madders conducted with Ms Higgins two years after the alleged assault was played to the jury at her first trial, which was eventually dropped due to jury misconduct.
A visibly distressed Ms Higgins berated herself as she told police she would have conversations in person or on the phone.
“In retrospect, it was much harder for me to verify it. It was stupid,” she told police as she began to cry.
“It’s not stupid, Brittany,” the lead detective, Mr. Madders, told her.
