DETECTIVE CONFESSES TO YEARS OF CORRUPTION

The New South Wales Police Integrity Commission yesterday produced
the first "rollover" of its corruption inquiry - a detective sergeant
who was missed in the first clean-out five years ago.

Detective Sergeant Raymond John Peattie, 46, "threw my hands up",
confessing to a career of corruption that began in 1980, continued
during the exposures of the police royal commission in 1996, and
flourished thereafter, making a mockery of the NSW Police Service's
much-vaunted reforms.

Mr Peattie, chief of Manly detectives for a year until he went on
sick leave in December after the arrest of two crooked detectives he
protected, "rolled over" and began talking to PIC investigators last
week after he was incriminated by tape recordings.

"When you're on the dark side, you're always on the dark side," Mr
Peattie said yesterday when asked to explain his corruption. "I
didn't have the guts to say no."

Mr Peattie admitted that he and a colleague, M2, stole money from
drug dealers, including $8000 on one occasion, when he ran a four-man
drug squad in the Manly area between 1989 and 1990.

In 2000, as crime manager of Manly detectives, Mr Peattie gave the
drug beat to two detective senior constables, David Phillip Patison,
41, and Matthew John Jasper, 30, who stole $203,000 from nine drug
dealers in 11 months.

In that time, Mr Peattie said he was paid at least six bribes
totalling more than $3000 by Mr Patison, Mr Jasper and M5, an
undercover police informer, knowing the money had been stolen from
drug dealers. "I piddled it up against a wall," he said.

Under questioning, Mr Peattie admitted to verballing suspects or
signing false statements "at least 20" times between 1984, when he
was in the CIB and regional armed robbery squads, and 1991. He said
Mr Patison typed up five of the verbals at Manly.

Between 1989 and 1990, he was paid $500 by a drug dealer after
promising him a "letter of comfort" for a magistrate, which Mr
Peattie did not write.

He said he took his first bribe - $100 from a raid on a gambling game
- - in 1980 when he was a trainee detective with the infamous 21
Division.

"It scared the hell out of me," Mr Peattie said, claiming he then
sought the company of detectives whom he knew to be honest.

But in 1989 he was robbing Vince Caccamo and two other heroin
dealers, saying "it was the first time I'd faced that kind of
temptation and I failed".

Despite a catalogue of corruption, Mr Peattie insisted he was not a
member of "the Giggle," a term used by corrupt detectives to describe
themselves.

He claimed repeatedly that he had never wanted to be a crooked cop -
there was no justification for his actions. "I never said no, but I
felt very uncomfortable about it," he said.

Even more frequently, Mr Peattie could not give details of verbals,
bribes or the names of guilty colleagues despite aggressive
questioning.

"I'm not trying to cover up - like you're going to say I am," he
said, claiming he simply could not remember. But the questions kept
coming and will resume today.