Lindt cafe siege inquest: confusion among top NSW police over endgame at Martin Place

We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.

Advertisement

This was published 7 years ago

Lindt cafe siege inquest: confusion among top NSW police over endgame at Martin Place

By Patrick Begley
Updated

Three levels of senior police command had three different ideas of what would trigger a storming of the Lindt cafe siege stronghold.

An imminent risk of serious injury or death among hostages was the trigger, a tactical commander told an inquest on Wednesday.

Assistant Commissioner Mark Jenkins.

Assistant Commissioner Mark Jenkins.Credit: Daniel Munoz

But other evidence suggested his deputy believed there were no specific triggers for the "emergency action" plan.

The NSW Coroner's Court was read a recount of a conversation between the deputy and the commander of the alternate "deliberate action" response.

"So I said if he executes a hostage we're not going?" the deliberate action commander recalled asking.

"[The deputy] said 'no'. No, the call has go to come from higher up."

The inquest has previously heard the most senior officer overseeing the operation, police commander Mark Jenkins, also had a different idea about triggers.

Mr Jenkins previously testified that an imminent threat of death or serious injury could be a trigger but not the primary or automatic one.

Advertisement

Gabrielle Bashir, SC, barrister for the family of slain cafe manager Tori Johnson, asked the tactical commander why he had not acted sooner.

Ms Bashir suggested the trigger had been met when five hostages escaped at 2.03am and gunman Man Haron Monis fired the first shot of the siege.

"Now that an IS inspired hostage taker had fired his weapon at escaping hostages, it was time to take action," she said.

The tactical commander disagreed, saying no hostages had been hurt and he had wanted more information from them.

"The real reason why you didn't order entry earlier was because there was no other trigger point than the death or serious injury of a hostage that night," Ms Bashir put to the witness.

"No, that's not correct," he replied. He accepted the remaining hostages had been in danger but not "mortal" danger.

Earlier on Wednesday, the tactical commander, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was asked about negotiations with Monis.

The inquest heard hostage Selina Win Pe had made four phone calls on behalf of Monis asking Christmas lights outside the cafe be turned off.

In two of these calls she said she would be shot if the demands were not met by a certain time.

But the tactical commander said the demands were not conveyed to him.

"You would have expected to have been told of a demand of that kind, would you not?" asked Michael O'Connell, SC, a barrister for the family of Katrina Dawson, who died in the siege.

"Yes I would," the tactical commander said.

He said he was only asked if he had a problem with the lights being turned off. He replied that if it could help in the release of hostages, he approved.

The tactical commander testified he was not a part of an earlier decision to text Monis telling him other demands would not be met.

He was concerned rather than frustrated by this exclusion, he said, agreeing with legal counsel the text message plan had the potential to provoke Monis.

After a "robust discussion", the text message plan was called off.

Monis killed Mr Johnson by shooting him in the head as he knelt on the cafe floor at 2.03am. Ms Dawson was killed by police bullet fragments.

The inquest continues before Coroner Michael Barnes.

Most Viewed in National

Loading