Australia’s most decorated living soldier has been charged with allegedly committing war crimes in Afghanistan more than a decade ago.
Ben Roberts-Smith – who left the military in 2013 – was arrested at Sydney Airport on Tuesday and will appear in court on five counts of murder.
A ruling in a defamation trial handed down in 2023 found that the former Australian Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) corporal had killed several unarmed Afghans.
The 47-year-old soldier, decorated with the Victoria Cross, denies having committed any crime and has previously stated that the accusations against him – which have not yet been evaluated under the criminal standard – were “atrocious” and “malicious”.
Unpublished case
Roberts-Smith’s civil defamation trial was the first time in history that a court had heard allegations of war crimes committed by Australian forces.
Roberts-Smith argued that the alleged executions occurred lawfully during combat or, in fact, never occurred; Last year, he lost an appeal against the Federal Court ruling.
At a press conference held on Tuesday in Sydney, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) confirmed the arrest of a 47-year-old former military man and announced that he would be charged with the murder of unarmed detainees while serving in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012.
The defendant faces one count of the war crime of murder, one count of co-perpetrating a murder and three counts of aiding, abetting, advising or procuring murder.
“It will be alleged that the victims were shot dead by the accused, or by subordinate members of the ADF [Fuerza de Defensa Australiana] in the presence of the defendant and acting under his orders,” stated Commissioner Krissy Barrett.
In 2020, a landmark inquiry – known as the Brereton Report – found “credible evidence” that elite Australian soldiers had unlawfully killed 39 people in Afghanistan, recommending that 19 active and retired members of the ADF be investigated.
For this purpose, a specialized team called the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) was created. To date, this body has only charged one other person.
“Significant step”
Ross Barnett, director of investigations at the OSI, called Roberts-Smith’s arrest a “significant step” given the “difficult circumstances.”
“The OSI has been tasked with investigating literally dozens of murders that were allegedly committed in the middle of a war zone, in a country 9,000 km from Australia,” he said.
“We cannot go to that country, we do not have access to the crime scenes… We do not have photographs, site plans, measurements, recovery of projectiles, blood spatter analysis… We do not have access to the deceased.”
Barrett added that allegations of misconduct were limited to “a very small section of our trusted and respected Australian Defense Force (ADF)”.
“The vast majority of the ADF are a source of pride for our country,” he said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that he would not comment on the case as it is under judicial consideration.
“[Es] It is extremely important that there is no political interference,” he said.
In a statement, the Australian War Memorial announced it will revisit its exhibition dedicated to Ben Roberts-Smith.
A plaque accompanying the display of his uniform and medals has been repeatedly updated to reflect the accusations against him, as well as the outcome of his defamation trial.
At the time Group 9 newspapers first published reports of the allegations in 2018, Roberts-Smith was considered a national hero, having received Australia’s highest military decoration for single-handedly neutralizing Taliban fighters attacking his SAS platoon.
In an attempt to clear his name, he undertook a high-profile legal battle, which lasted seven years, cost millions of dollars and was described by some as the “trial of the century” in Australia.
However, a Federal Court judge ruled – based on the steadiness of probabilities – that Roberts-Smith had participated in at least four murders; a ruling that was ratified on appeal.
Anthony Besanko concluded that Roberts-Smith had twice ordered the execution of unarmed men in order to “harden” rookie soldiers, and that he was implicated in the deaths of a handcuffed farmer, who was kicked off a cliff, and of a captured Taliban fighter, whose prosthetic leg was taken as a trophy and later used by troops as a drinking vessel.
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