NSW Police Minister David Elliott, who this week declared he would allow police to strip-search his young children if they deemed it necessary, has been accused of grabbing a 17-year-old driver on the arm during an alleged road rage incident.
And NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge says he has referred the allegation to NSW Police Commissioner for investigation. Not, as they say, a Good Look.
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Before we get to that, here are the agreed facts: The Australian reports Elliott and the P-plater were involved in a minor prang in the Sydney suburb of Baulkham Hills on October 27. According to a NSW Police statement, a 49-year-old man, believed to be Elliott, visited Castle Hill Police Station to claim his Lexus had been hit by a Mazda ute earlier in the day. Separately, a 17-year-old attended the station. No injuries were recorded, and The Australian states no charges have been laid.
The stories split from there. Elliott told the paper the teen “clipped” his car, and that he spoke with the young driver once they were both stopped at a set of traffic lights. The MP said he asked for the teen’s details, as is required by law after road accident causing damage to a vehicle, but the driver allegedly swore at him and his wife while refusing to provide the information.
Elliott admitted he “blew up” at the teen’s alleged behaviour, told him his work related to the NSW Police, and handed him a business card confirming the fact. The teen reportedly objected, asking to see Elliott’s badge.
“He said ‘show me your badge’. I said ‘I pay for the badges, I don’t get one’’,” Elliott told the paper.
The MP said he’d likely pay for the damage out of pocket as it would cost less than paying his insurance excess, adding “I’m dirty about it and furious he swore at my wife.”
The teen and his father have a different interpretation of events. The boy’s father, who also spoke to The Australian, said Elliott had chased his son through Castle Hill and actually grabbed his arm during the “road rage” incident. The man claims his son called him during the ordeal, and that he could clearly hear someone else yelling through the phone. He also claimed Elliott told his son he “worked for the cops”, not just that he was the state politician broadly responsible for law enforcement. And yes, the father claimed Elliott grabbed his son’s arm at some point.
Elliott has denied participating in anything which could be construed as a car chase and denied ever touching the teen.
The report has sparked condemnation from Elliott’s political detractor Shoebridge, who said he had referred the matter to NSW Police Commissioner Michael Fuller for investigation this morning.
The letter, shared on Twitter, asks Fuller to consider if the allegations made against Elliott could constitute reckless driving, assault, and impersonating a police officer – all of which are criminal offences in NSW.
We’ve written to the Police Commissioner seeking an urgent interstate investigation of this – this behaviour by the Police Minister must be taken seriously. pic.twitter.com/5n9JWSAIO7
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) November 7, 2019
