The father of the teenage cyclist who was hit by a four-wheel drive driven by Daniel Andrews’ wife has called for the case to be reopened following a shocking new report who claimed that the police covered up the real circumstances of the accident.
Peter Meuleman, Ryan Meuleman’s father, said the new report sheds “a whole new light on what happened” to his son, then 15, in 2013.
Mr Andrews was leader of the Labor Party and the state opposition when the four-wheel drive vehicle he, his wife and three children were travelling in struck the teenage cyclist near Blairgowrie on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula on January 7, 2013.
The investigation by former deputy police commissioner Dr Raymond Shuey, who was commissioned by Meulemans’ lawyers, found that Andrews’ accident was covered up “to avoid implicating a political figure”.
Mr Meuleman said Dr Shuey’s report “contradicts the police report of what happened and contradicts Daniel and Catherine Andrews’ version of events”.
“We hope Victoria Police will reopen the case and reinvestigate it fully,” he told Melbourne radio station 3AW on Tuesday.
“The report contradicts much of what the original police report said. We do not believe the initial police investigation was thorough at all.”
Although Meuleman said “a lot of old wounds have almost completely healed” in the 13 years since the crash, the family felt at the time that they “didn’t really get justice.”
Peter Meuleman (pictured July) wants the investigation into the 2013 crash involving his son Ryan and the family of Dan Andrews to be reopened after a shocking new report
“We were dealt a bad hand,” Meuleman said.
“With new evidence, new witnesses and new reports, we believe we can achieve a little more justice.”
Mr Meuleman said Dr Shuey’s findings – that the SUV hit the teenager after “travelling at speed” and on the wrong side of the road – were “most consistent with Ryan’s injuries” and also a report from the Victorian Road Traffic Accident Commission (TAC).
Following the crash, Ryan was airlifted to the Royal Children’s Hospital with life-threatening injuries including a punctured lung, broken ribs, a ruptured spleen and internal bleeding.
Meuleman said Ryan lost 90 percent of his spleen, but while many of the other injuries had healed, the “most devastating and lasting effect” of the accident has been the “mental trauma.”
“We’re just trying to protect him (Ryan) and help him move on with his life and live as normal a life as possible,” she said.
Mr Andrews has always insisted his wife had “come to a complete stop” and “turned right from a stationary position” moments before the teenager collided broadside with the Ford Territory.
Police closed the case without filing charges and the officers were later cleared of any wrongdoing by the corruption watchdog for failing to conduct a breathalyzer test on the driver.
Ryan was 15 and riding his bike in Blairgowrie on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula when he was hit by the Andrews’ SUV on January 7, 2013.
In his 36-page assessment of the investigation, Dr. Shuey found the evidence did not support Mr. and Mrs. Andrews’ account of what happened.
“Daniel and Catherine Andrews’ statements that their vehicle stopped on Melbourne Rd are not consistent with the aftermath of the impact, nor is (witness) Brad Morgan’s report of tyres screeching prior to impact,” Dr Shuey wrote.
‘The vehicle’s effective braking distance of 19.2 m after impact is indicative of a speed of 45 km/h before impact.
‘The version provided by Catherine and Daniel Andrews is considered improbable and implausible. The truth is still pending.
‘The vehicle most likely made a turn at high speed, cutting the corner and still on the wrong side of the road on Ridley Street, 27 metres from Melbourne Road when the collision occurred.’
The report, commissioned as part of ongoing damages proceedings before the Supreme Court over the crash, found the “spreading of a lie” began when police recorded the driver’s name.
In a Traffic Incident System (TIS) report made by police hours after the crash, the driver’s name was given as ‘Catherine Louie Kesik’, Ms Andrews’ maiden name.
The report found the name was contrary to that recorded in inquest notes, statements in TAC reports and “contemporaneous notes” made by police.
Andrews’ Ford Territory after the collision with Ryan Meuleman. Police said Ms Andrews was behind the wheel at the time of the crash.
He said the “irregularity” with Ms Andrews’ name would be “something of a head-scratcher” to supervisors, insurance companies and legal reviewers.
“In my view, this deception is part of a course of action and a component of an overt cover-up to avoid implicating a political figure in a potentially fatal accident,” Dr. Shuey wrote.
“The fact that supervisors and reviewers failed to identify this or seek an explanation is inexcusable.”
Dr Shuey added that Victoria Police failed to demonstrate competent professional practice as it failed to follow a “rudimentary examination” of the evidence at the investigation, which was demonstrated by its “hasty and illogical conclusion”.
The review found that the police report lacked critical information, including photographs, measurements and professional interview techniques.
Dr. Shuey said the researchers failed to take into account the available evidence and called their conclusion “unfounded and unsupported.”
He added that the “negligent approach” undermined the integrity of the investigation and also jeopardized the “pursuit of justice.”
Police also repeatedly refused to provide Meuleman’s family with details of the driver, even though it was their duty to do so.
Dr Shuey said the decision not to provide the family with the driver’s details “was designed to conceal the identity of those involved”.
The report also questioned why Mr Andrews decided to drive away with the broken windscreen.
An explosive report claims the investigation into Daniel and Catherine Andrews’ crash with the teenage cyclist was covered up ‘to avoid implicating a political figure’
“If it is the police, it is a dereliction of duty; if it is Daniel Andrews, it is the disposal of evidence and, in any event, dangerous or careless driving at the very least,” the report said.
But the documents were later changed to indicate that no tests were performed, claiming that Ms Andrews “did not smell of intoxicating liquor”.
The review concludes that another major oversight was that police failed to verify the identity of the driver of the government vehicle involved in the accident.
“Witness Jane Crittenden claims she saw Catherine Andrews in the passenger seat after the accident,” it said.
“In my view, this investigative failure is a deliberate omission. It leaves the question of who was driving unresolved and in dispute,” the report said.
Shuey’s review was based on analysis of FOI documents, witness statements and his own reconstruction of the incident.
Dr. Shuey died in August, just days after completing the report, following a health battle related to Agent Orange from the Vietnam War.
Mr. Meuleman, now an adult, is suing the law firm of Slater & Gordon, which represented him after the accident, for allegedly failing to act in his best interests when it negotiated an $80,000 compensation settlement with the Transportation Accident Commission.
Slater & Gordon denies the allegations and will defend the case. The trial is scheduled for May 2025.
In July, Mr and Mrs Andrews were forced to hand over their phone and credit card details from the day of the crash following a High Court order.
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest any wrongdoing on the part of Mr or Mrs Andrews.
Victoria Police told Daily Mail Australia that a “thorough investigation” had been carried out and that their findings were consistent.
“As previously stated, Victoria Police conducted a thorough investigation into this matter, as did IBAC, and all findings were consistent,” Victoria Police said.
“We have no further comments to make on this matter.”
The Daily Mail has requested further comment from Victoria Police.