Ask Onix
Former SAS corporal arrested at Sydney airport
Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia's most decorated living soldier, was taken into custody on Tuesday at Sydney airport. The 47-year-old faces five counts of murder under war crimes legislation linked to his service in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012.
Roberts-Smith will spend the night in custody before a bail hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
Charges stem from 2023 defamation ruling
A Federal Court judgment last year found, on the balance of probabilities, that Roberts-Smith had killed several unarmed Afghans. The former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal and Victoria Cross recipient denied all allegations, calling them "egregious" and "spiteful."
The 2023 civil trial marked the first time an Australian court examined claims of war crimes by the country's military personnel.
Details of the allegations
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) confirmed the charges at a Sydney press conference. Roberts-Smith faces one count of murder as a war crime, one count of jointly commissioning a murder, and three counts of aiding, abetting, counseling, or procuring murder.
"It will be alleged the victims were shot by the accused or shot by subordinate members of the ADF in the presence of, and acting on the orders of, the accused," AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett said.
AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett
Broader context: Brereton Report findings
The charges follow a 2020 inquiry, known as the Brereton Report, which uncovered "credible evidence" that elite Australian soldiers unlawfully killed 39 people in Afghanistan. The report recommended 19 current or former Defence Force members be investigated.
The Office of the Special Investigator (OSI), established to probe these allegations, has charged only one other individual to date.
"The OSI has been tasked with investigating literally dozens of murders alleged to have been committed in the middle of a war zone in a country 9,000km from Australia. We don't have access to crime scenes, photographs, or forensic evidence," said Ross Barnett, OSI director of investigations.
Ross Barnett, OSI Director of Investigations
Government and institutional responses
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declined to comment on the case, citing its sub judice status. "It is very important that there not be political engagement," he said.
The Australian War Memorial announced it would review its exhibit featuring Roberts-Smith's uniform and medals. A plaque accompanying the display has been updated multiple times to reflect ongoing allegations and the outcome of his defamation trial.
Background: From national hero to legal battles
Roberts-Smith was once regarded as a national hero after receiving Australia's highest military honor for single-handedly overpowering Taliban fighters during an attack on his SAS platoon. In 2018, Nine newspapers published allegations of war crimes, prompting Roberts-Smith to launch a high-profile defamation case.
The legal battle, dubbed by some as Australia's "trial of the century," spanned seven years and cost millions of dollars. Federal Court Justice Anthony Besanko ruled that Roberts-Smith was involved in at least four murders, including ordering the killings of unarmed men to "blood" rookie soldiers and kicking a handcuffed farmer off a cliff. The judge also found he was linked to the death of a captured Taliban fighter whose prosthetic leg was later used as a drinking vessel by troops.
