5 days Ago By Miklos Bolza
A corruption case against an ex-CFMEU state secretary and his son has been put on hold pending a decision on the union's High Court challenge to its Labor-imposed administration. Darren Greenfield and his son Michael - respectively the union's former NSW secretary and branch assistant secretary - have been accused of accepting bribes from a building company for preferential treatment from the union and access to contracts. The allegations date back as far as 2018.
Both had their matters heard at Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Tuesday, when their solicitor Simon Long asked for an adjournment. The pair wanted to wait until the High Court handed down its decision after a two-day hearing in Canberra earlier in December, when the CFMEU challenged the legality of a federal government decision to plunge the union into administration. The move, which sparked nationwide protests by union members, was prompted by media reports of alleged links between the CFMEU and organised crime, and claims of widespread corruption.
More than 200 union officials were terminated after the attorney-general placed the union's construction and general divisions into administration, alongside all of its state and territory branches. Any union property possessed by officials, such as cars, mobile phones, laptops and documents, can be seized as part of the action. On Tuesday, Mr Long said the High Court's decision was critical to whether the Greenfields had funds to continue hiring his law firm McGirr & Associates in a private capacity.
Crown prosecutor Aaron Irving agreed to the adjournment, saying that the parties had not yet been able to have any substantial negotiations. Such closed-door discussions typically happen between prosecutors and defence lawyers in an attempt to resolve criminal cases through a plea deal or the dismissal of some charges. The charges against the duo were brought in 2021.
Magistrate Michael Antrum adjourned both Greenfield cases until February 18 but said he wanted them to proceed on that date regardless of what the High Court decided. An independent report found the Victorian branch of the CFMEU's construction arm was so laden with violence and intimidation that a series of expletive-laden threats caught on video were deemed "unexceptional". In September, an administrator committed to establishing an integrity unit in Victoria to investigate the allegations and said he would cast his net wider to examine possible bikie gang and organised crime involvement in Queensland, NSW and South Australia.
.
