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Nicholas vs John Dewar |
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Former Rotorua policeman John
Dewar had no motive to cover-up for suspended assistant commissioner Clint
Rickards and former policeman Brad Shipton, the High Court at Hamilton was
told today. Dewar's lawyer Paul Mabey QC made
the comments when he opened the defence case this morning. Dewar, 55, of Hamilton, denies
four charges of attempting to obstruct or defeat the course of justice
between 1993 and 1995. Dewar was chief inspector of the
Rotorua CIB when Louise Nicholas approached police in 1993, claiming to have
been raped by a policeman when she was aged 13, and separately sexually
assaulted by Mr Rickards, Shipton and another former policeman Bob Schollum. The Crown alleges that Dewar
attempted to prevent the course of justice during the rape trial, by giving
inadmissible evidence, leading to two aborted trials. It also alleges he suppressed Mrs
Nicholas's allegations against Mr Rickards, Shipton and Schollum. The trio were found not guilty at
a trial earlier this year of sexually assaulting her, but Shipton and
Schollum are serving prison sentences for raping a woman at Mt Maunganui. Mr Mabey told the jury that if any
allegations against Mr Rickards, Shipton and Schollum had been made to Dewar,
he would have acted on them. "At no stage were the
allegations made at all." Mr Mabey said Dewar had no motive
to attempt a cover-up any allegations in order to protect Mr Rickards and
Shipton because he barely knew them. Dewar may not have always
"run things by the book", but that did not mean he had committed
any crimes, he said. "Far, far from the cover-up,
he did what he had to do according to his duties as a police officer at the
time and that any allegations made in this court that he has broken the
law....is simply wrong." Dewar is the only witness the
defence is calling. - NZPA |
