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MP Peter Slipper faces car travel charges

Former speaker Peter Slipper has been summonsed to face three travel fraud charges in a Canberra court.

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Source: AAP


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Former speaker Peter Slipper will face three charges in court after being summonsed by police who investigated allegations of travel fraud.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) on Monday summonsed the MP in relation to three offences of dishonestly causing a risk of a loss to the Commonwealth.

He will appear in Canberra Magistrates Court on February 15 where he will be formally charged.

A police statement on Monday did not say what the charges related to.

However, the summons follows claims made in April 2012 when Mr Slipper's former staffer James Ashby alleged the then-speaker had misused Cabcharge dockets by giving a sheaf of blank dockets to drivers.

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Mr Slipper denied the allegation and Mr Ashby later withdrew it from his sexual harassment case.

Police finalised their investigation into the allegations of fraud in July and referred the matter to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.

A spokesman for Attorney-General Nicola Roxon said the decision to issue the summons was made by the Australian Federal Police, an independent statutory office.

"The investigation and charging of any person is a matter for the law enforcement authorities - the Australian Federal Police and the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions," the spokesman told AAP on Monday.

He said defendants were entitled to the presumption of innocence.

"Prejudicial commentary must be avoided to ensure a fair trial," he said. "This will be a matter for a court to decide."

Comment was being sought from Mr Slipper's office.


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