Ex-Vic cop behind informer murder: police

The officer in charge of investigating the murders of a Victorian police informer and his wife has testified he believes a former detective is responsible.

Victorian police still believe former detective Paul Dale is responsible for organising the murders of police informer Terence Hodson and his wife.

Mr Hodson and his wife Christine were shot dead at their Kew home in May 2004, months before he was due to give evidence against detectives Dale and David Miechel over the burglary of a drug stash house.

Detective Senior Sergeant Boris Buick, who is now in charge of the investigation, told an inquest on Friday he believes Mr Dale is responsible.

Mr Dale and convicted hitman Rodney Collins were charged with murder in 2009, but the charges were dropped the following year when gangland figure Carl Williams was killed in prison. Both deny any involvement.

Det Sen Sgt Buick said his hypothesis remains that Mr Dale asked Williams to organise a hit on Mr Hodson.

Williams then asked Collins to kill Mr Hodson, he told the Victorian Coroners Court.

"Rod Collins, being the person that he is, willingly carried out that task," Det Sen Sgt Buick said.

"There is nothing to suggest that working theory is incorrect."

Collins is serving two life sentences for the 1987 murders of Dorothy and Ramon Abbey.

Under cross examination from Mr Dale's lawyer Geoffrey Steward, Det Sen Sgt Buick said police did not have a case against the former detective without Williams.

Det Sen Sgt Buick said a $1 million reward for information remains in place.

The Hodsons' son Andrew told the inquest he removed his father's gun from the house after he and his sister found their parents dead.

"I didn't know if they were going to come after me, if they were going to come after my sisters," he said.

"I had to protect myself."

Mr Hodson eventually returned the gun to police and later pleaded guilty to illegal possession of a firearm.

He said drug kingpin Tony Mokbel, for whom he had "indirectly" worked, told him his father was a police informer.

While they shared a prison unit between late 2001 and early 2002, Mokbel had received word that his dad "was a dog", Mr Hodson said.

He said Mokbel later produced evidence of his father's informing when they met outside prison in October 2002.

"I said `prove it' and he pulled out a piece of paper that had my dad's informer number on it," Mr Hodson said.

Mr Hodson said his father denied the allegation, leading to a falling out for a number of months.

Terence Hodson eventually admitted he was an informer, saying he was doing it for the sake of his children.

Andrew Hodson said Mokbel later told him: "I'd look at Miechel in regards to your parents' murder."

Mr Hodson said he did not tell anyone about the security arrangements at the Kew home, but Det Sen Sgt Buick said police are still investigating that line of inquiry.

"It remains a possibility that he has either intentionally or deliberately passed on information that led to the murder of his parents," the detective said.

However, he said there was nothing to suggest Andrew Hodson was directly involved.

State Coroner Judge Ian Gray will hear final submissions in the inquest in November.


Share

3 min read

Published

Updated


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world