New South Wales Police have been accused of impropriety during their 2024 raid on the home of Alan Jones. His legal team have suggested the search warrant may have been invalid, and therefore much of the evidence gathered could be inadmissible.
The veteran broadcaster, who is now 85, is due to face court in August on 25 charges of alleged indecent assault and two charges of sexual touching against nine alleged victims over nearly two decades.
During a hearing on Tuesday, his barrister Gabrielle Bashir SC called on the prosecution to release material taken from Jones’ phone and through intercepted telephone calls.
“The phone was seized and the evidence to date suggests it was then searched willy‑nilly,” Bashir said, suggesting the search warrant used may have been invalid.
Bashir said the warrant used for the raid indicated that Jones was being investigated for sexual intercourse without consent, but he was ultimately charged with a different range of offences. She flagged that her client may move to have some of the evidence dismissed on this basis, or potentially seek to have the entire case thrown out.
Barrister Peter Singleton, representing the NSW Police Commissioner, denied that police had conducted the search inappropriately or that there was anything wrong with the warrant. He argued the court should not order police to release additional documents, describing the defence request as a “fishing expedition”.
Court documents outline that the alleged offences occurred in a range of locations including Sydney, Fitzroy Falls, Kiama, Mittagong, Tamworth, and Jones’ workplace and home. Jones has vigorously denied all accusations.
The broadcaster dominated Sydney’s airwaves for four decades before moving to a role at Sky News and later online broadcaster ADH.
