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Counsel-assisting the inquiry Geoffrey Watson put his head in his hands during evidence given by Obeid family associate Rocco Triulcio...

Today he was back on the stand, but at first said he could not recall paying a $300,000 deposit on a farm for the Obeid family in the Bylong Valley.

"It could have been (that) we directed some of the money towards it, but we didn't fund it," he said.

"I don't do the accounts."

Laughter erupted in the public galley when the animated witness said he bought a farm next door to the Obeid property because it had dams, a bore and a lot of grass.

There was even more laughter when he told the inquiry that he could not recall the name of his own property and had never done any work there.

Mr Triulcio said he registered the farm under someone else's name because he was "away on his honeymoon".

He also admitted that he had only been to his farm once or twice in the past four years.

Mr Triulcio admitted he knew there was coal in the area before buying the farm but gave the inquiry conflicting answers about how he knew that.

There was much disappointment in the packed public gallery when he was stood down.

His brother, Rosario Triulcio, was then questioned about their farm and denied that he was fabricating his answers.

When asked about stock that may have been kept on farms in the Bylong Valley area, Rosario Triulcio said he was sure it did not include rats.

Mr Ipp then replied: "Not four-legged ones, anyway."

Justin Lewis admitted he has rarely been to the farm and has never put stock on it. He said he has never bought a cow, or even a hammer.

Despite paying $3.5 million for the farm he said he did not know if it was used for dairy cattle or for breeding cattle.

The witness admitted that when he was questioned in private ahead of the public inquiry he made a statement that he thought cows were on the property to, "walk around and eat grass."

He also admitted not knowing what the term 'agronomist' means and admitted he knew nothing about the house on the farm he brought.

There was laughter in the public gallery from Bylong Valley landholders who have travelled from the Upper Hunter for the inquiry.

Another witness, Bylong Valley General Store owner Jodie Nancarrow told the ICAC she had a bizarre phone call from Justin Lewis after he brought Coggan Creek asking for directions about how to get there.

She said it was on a Sunday afternoon and he asked her if she had access to Google Maps.

But Mr Lewis denied not seeing the property before he brought it.

He was then questioned about why he agreed to pay 30 per cent of any profits he made from a coal mining venture to the Obeids.

A witness at the corruption inquiry in New South Wales has been accused of 'lying his head off' about his knowledge of secret deals that would turn ordinary farms into vastly more valuable mining leases. The land in question is in the Bylong Valley in the state's upper Hunter region. The Sydney businessman Justin Lewis stood to make around $7 million from the purchase of a farm over which a mining lease was later granted. The ICAC is investigating allegations former Labor MP Eddie Obeid, his family and their associates stood to profit $100 million from inside knowledge about the mining leases.

A lawyer appearing at a corruption inquiry into former New South Wales Labor ministers has been blasted for deliberately blocking a fire escape to stop reporters leaving the building.

At the start of today's evidence, the ICAC heard how lawyer Robert Macaulay stood in front of a fire escape on Wednesday afternoon to stop reporters approaching witness Andrew Kaidbay.

Counsel-assisting Geoffrey Watson told the inquiry Australia has "freedom of the press" and stopping reporters doing their job was not acceptable.

He said he would normally ask Commissioner David Ipp to withdraw the lawyer's leave to appear at the inquiry, but Mr Watson said he had not done that because it would take up too much time.

An inquiry has heard that former New South Wales Labor Minister Eddie Obeid gave out information about his own travel plans to the media, despite his lawyer accusing the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) of leaking it.

Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid is yet to give evidence at the ICAC inquiry into allegations he and his associates stood to profit $100 million from inside knowledge about mining licences.

At the start of evidence on Friday, his lawyer Stuart Littlemore referred to a newspaper story that reported Mr Obeid has rearranged travel plans because he might be called as a witness before Christmas.

Stuart Littlemore said the ICAC must have, "leaked the information" to the media.

The Counsel-Assisting Geoffrey Watson and his junior Counsel-Assisting Nicholas Chen then took it in turns to tell the Commissioner they did not leak the information.

Commissioner David Ipp said the suggestion that ICAC staff wanted to know about the Obeid's holiday travel plans or leaked them was, "flimsy."

And he said he personally knows nothing about the Obeids' travel plans.

"I'm not concerned with them," he said.

There was laughter in the public gallery when it was later revealed to the Commissioner that the information was in fact given to the media by Eddie Obeid himself.

Schultzz,

You're becoming repetitious.

There must be a contest in AU for the greatest number of posts on this site.
There must be a contest in AU for the greatest number of posts on this site.

Schultz


I left the quote in twice, because you have said this twice. No my friend there is no contest. I live in Australia and have no interest in most of the posts my Eastern States fellow Australian posts. So I am not surprised if you, if not even living in Oz wonder what they are all about. Maybe James feels the need to make this Forum multi national. I realised years ago, that if one is not American, no one really gives a "fig"( I would have said "toss", but this is a Catholic Forum), about posts that are not related to the American situation.

Peter

Edward (“Eddie”) Moses Obeid OAM (born 25 October 1943), a former Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council who served between 1991 and 2011, representing the Australian Labor Party. He was the Minister for Fisheries and the Minister for Mineral Resources from 1999–2003. Prior to the March 2015 expiry of his term in the Legislative Council, Obeid announced his decision to retire early on 10 May 2011, citing family reasons...

In November 2012, the New South Wales ICAC began a series of investigative hearings relating to Obeid's alleged property and mining interests. This inquiry concerns, among other issues, the circumstances surrounding a decision made in 2008 by the then Minister for Primary Industries and Minister for Mineral Resources, Ian Macdonald, to open a mining area in the Bylong Valley for coal exploration. These circumstances include whether Macdonald's decision was influenced by Obeid.

Until today, I had no idea that 'toss' is potentially more offensive than 'fig'.

Another witness, Neil Whittaker, the chief executive of River Energy, told the hearing he could not recall much about a letter with a false company letterhead and his signature on it.

Mr Whittaker, a former National Rugby League (NRL) chief executive and former Krispy Kreme executive, was asked if he signed the document.

He eventually admitted that he did.

"I can't recall who asked me to sign it," Mr Whittaker said.

Frustrated with the time Mr Whittaker took to answer questions, the counsel assisting, Geoffrey Watson, at one point snapped at him: "You must have spoken to some human being to get this information."

The Left faction of the New South Wales Labor Party has issued an apology for its support of disgraced former minister Ian Macdonald.

Mr Macdonald has been suspended by the ALP as the state's Independent Commission Against Corruption investigations a number of his ministerial decisions.

In 2009 he was expelled from the party's Left faction over accusations he sided too often with the Right faction.

Mining billionaire Travers Duncan has been grilled at the ICAC about his stake in Cascade Coal and his knowledge of mining tenders in the Bylong Valley near Mudgee.

Mr Duncan has denied getting top-secret government information from Mr Macdonald and denied leaking that information to others.

After he hesitated in answering several questions, the Counsel-Assisting, Geoffrey Watson, asked the witness if he assumed he was a mug. Mr Duncan also denied that.

Mr Duncan has admitted he wanted the Obeid name removed from a mining project.

Mr Watson asked: "Why did you try to get rid of the Obeids?"

After hesitating and hedging around the question, Mr Duncan eventually said: "They always had bad publicity."

Mr Watson then became angry and snapped: "What were they famous for?" adding, "Was it because of their cheap suits?"

After he answered several questions from counsel assisting Geoffrey Watson with "I can't recall", Mr Watson quipped that a doctor should be called in to treat the large number of inquiry witnesses who are suffering from "severe memory loss".

Mr Watson also suggested the witness was "incurious" after he alleged he had not read certain company emails.

The ICAC has previously heard allegations White Energy agreed to pay $500 million for Cascade Coal in a mining licence deal that fell through.

Cascade Coal has been linked to the Obeid family at the inquiry.

On Thursday banker and Cascade Coal investor Richard Poole was accused of lying when he denied knowing the Obeids were behind a complex coal deal.

He denied trying to cover up their involvement when he when he changed a draft of a Cascade Coal memo.

Earlier when challenging him about his knowledge of the Obeid's involvement in the project, Mr Watson said: "You're a liar, aren't you?"

Mr Poole replied: "No".

The Counsel Assisting and ICAC Commissioner became increasingly angry when he would not answer questions.

Banker and Cascade Coal investor Richard Poole was in the witness box for a second day on Friday to hear secretly recorded phone taps of him discussing a mining licence given to the company.

In the conversations recorded in 2011, he talks to his colleague Greg Jones about mining transactions.

In one conversation Mr Jones tells Mr Poole he spoke to the Obeids after they became annoyed about not receiving a payment of $30 million.

In the recording Mr Jones says he told the Obeids they were "off with the pixies" and "you guys are paranoid idiots".

Mr Jones also refers to the family as "our Irish Catholic mates".

On the witness list today were the former head of the NSW Minerals Council, Dr Nicole Williams, and Strathfield real estate agent Joseph Georges.

After Dr Williams tried to leave before she was cross-examined, ICAC Commissioner David Ipp told her: "You will just have to enjoy the moment."

Dr Williams replied: "Thrilling."

After she stepped down, it was Mr Georges's turn in the witness stand.

Today, Mr Georges first denied having been involved in any business ventures with the Obeids, then admitted lying.

An accountant has told a corruption inquiry he deliberately lied about his association with former New South Wales Labor minister Eddie Obeid and his family.

John Campo, who was previously in the witness box in November, told the Independent Commission Against Corruption that when he was questioned by a reporter in 2010 about knowing the Obeid family, Eddie Obeid's son Paul told him to lie to protect their privacy...

After Commissioner David Ipp told the witness he was not a puppet, and asked him why he lied to the reporter, John Campo he said he "just didn't think about it."

He also said the reporter had been bothering him.

During today's hearing, the Commissioner chastised Eddie Obeid's barrister Stuart Littlemore for making inappropriate comments while Sam Archie was in the witness box.

Mr Levi admitted there were "reputational issues" about being associated with the Obeids in business, but denied he has been involved in any wrongdoing.

Earlier today, after Counsel-Assisting Geoffrey Watson complained about out-of-line chatter from various legal teams, Commissioner David Ipp warned them they will be thrown out if they do not behave.

Mr Watson also told the public hearing that investigators have been unable to find a former Anglo Coal geologist Toni Best, who is now believed to be living in Canada.

But after a reporter tweeted the ICAC remarks, the witness was located within a few minutes.

Meanwhile a newspaper reporter said she escaped serious injury after a piece of the ceiling fell near where she was sitting in the media room on level seven.

Today, the inquiry was played phone taps in which Mr McGuigan used a range of expletives when discussing mining deals with business colleague Greg Jones, who is also a good friend of Mr Macdonald.

Mr McGuigan said the phone calls had been intercepted late at night after he had had a few drinks.

After he denied regarding one mining project as a "pot of money", the inquiry was played a phone call in which he described it as that.

He said to Mr Jones: "What I've been thinking about is... how do we get control, how do we manage reputation and what's the shortest distance to a pot of money?"

There were heated exchanges between Mr Obeid and the Council Assisting the Inquiry, Geoffrey Watson, when Mr Watson accused Mr Obeid several times of lying.

At one point laughter erupted in the public gallery when Moses Obeid said Mr Watson obviously did not know the way business was done.

"If you're suggesting someone is going to go and spend $6 or $7 million based on what a politician tells you, you're off your rocker," Moses Obeid said.

A large crowd has gathered at a Sydney corruption inquiry to see former Labor minister Eddie Obeid give evidence.

The door to the public gallery opened just before 10:00am, but people started lining up from just before 8:00am.

Some people in the queue for the public gallery have brought folding chairs to sit on while they wait in the line.

Counsel-assisting the commission Geoffrey Watson put the allegations to the former minister.

"It's my intention to submit to the Commissioner that you, you Mr Obeid, engaged in a criminal conspiracy," he said.

"You engaged in that with Ian Macdonald, and with members of your family. And the design was to effect a fraud on the people of New South Wales."

Mr Obeid replied: "That's incorrect."

After laughter erupted in the public gallery when Mr Obeid was questioned about ethics and responsibility, the Commissioner David Ipp warned people to stop laughing.

"This is not a theatre," he said.

Former New South Wales Labor minister Eddie Obeid has told a corruption inquiry he cannot recall receiving money from a lucrative family trust.

Mr Obeid is in the witness box for a second day as part of an Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) probe into allegedly rigged coal mine tenders in the state's central-west.

It follows a fiery and ill-tempered session yesterday during which Mr Obeid was threatened with being found in contempt of court.

Counsel-Assisting Geoffrey Watson said to Mr Obeid that he hated to get the day off to a bad start but needed answers to some questions.

At one point he asked Mr Obeid to focus and said, "look at me".

Holding up an incriminating document, Mr Watson said to Eddie Obeid, "you don't intend to tell the truth do you?"

Eddie Obeid said he could not recall getting money from a family trust, even though he set it up and admitted he trained as an accountant when he first came to Australia.

He also could not recall if his wife has an income or will be able to pay back a $1.7 million loan from a trust account.

Frustrated with Eddie Obeid dodging around questions for a second day, Commissioner David Ipp said the ICAC will sit until he starts providing answers.

Before adjourning the hearing for a break, the Commissioner noted that, "time goes so fast when one is enjoying oneself."

Mr Watson told Mr Macdonald his evidence was a "load of hooey".

Mr Watson later said to him, "it seems as though just about everybody else is giving evidence different to yours, do you not see that?"

The former union official who made $10 million in connection with a mining lease being investigated by the New South Wales Independent Commission against Corruption (ICAC) is putting a valuable farm property up for sale.

Former Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) national secretary John Maitland bought a $1.5 million cattle breeding property near Bellbrook, outside Kempsey, on the state's north coast in mid-2011.

When the ABC asked about the farm sale, Mr Maitland replied: "No comment".

Accountant Sid Sassine has told the hearing that he has worked for the Obeids for 11 years, but he had trouble remembering the names of all the Obeid children he represents.

Sid Sassine said the family's wealth is in numerous trust accounts to protect their assets and denied that it is to conceal their involvement in business projects.

But he acknowledged the Obeid name is sometimes perceived as a hindrance to new business ventures.

Mining magnate Travers Duncan has launched legal action against the New South Wales corruption watchdog in a bid to stop its commissioner making any adverse findings.

The claim was first heard in the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday and lists the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and Commissioner David Ipp as defendants.

It is understood Mr Duncan could be financially affected by any findings the commissioner makes against former Labor Minister Eddie Obeid and his coal mining interests in the Bylong Valley.

The corruption inquiry into the activities of Mr Obeid and former Labor minister Ian Macdonald finished hearing evidence on Thursday.

Commissioner Ipp is expected to hand down the findings from the corruption inquiry in July.

Senior Labor figures have spoken out bluntly about the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) investigation into former powerbroker Eddie Obeid, saying the scandal is doing immense damage to the party.

Senior federal Labor Senator from NSW John Faulkner has told Four Corners it is likely the Obeid scandal will have an impact on the coming federal election in the state, where the party is battling to hold onto marginal seats.

"Labor's standing in the state of New South Wales has been very, very significantly damaged by the revelations at ICAC and it would be very surprising if that didn't have an impact federally," Senator Faulkner said.

In a blunt assessment, he added Mr Obeid was allowed to operate behind the scenes where his power in the NSW party went unchecked.

"I've never met him, never spoken to him and I've never heard him make a public speech but regardless of all that, he ran the New South Wales Labor Party and ran Labor governments in New South Wales," he said.

The Enemy Within

Edward (“Eddie”) Moses Obeid OAM (born 25 October 1943), a former Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council who served between 1991 and 2011, representing the Australian Labor Party. He was the Minister for Fisheries and the Minister for Mineral Resources from 1999–2003. Prior to the March 2015 expiry of his term in the Legislative Council, Obeid announced his decision to retire early on 10 May 2011, citing family reasons.

During his parliamentary career, Obeid was considered by many to be a corrupt "power broker" in the New South Wales Labor Party, belonging to the dominant right-wing sub-faction, often referred to as The Terrigals, so named as its inaugural meeting was held at Obeid's beach house in Terrigal

Obeid was born in the village of Matrite (sometimes called Metrit), (a village in Northern Lebanon with a Christian majority), in Lebanon. At age 6, he migrated to Australia with his family and they settled in Redfern, growing up in a terrace house. Of Lebanese Maronite Catholic faith, he was an altar boy, sold newspapers from a street corner and collected deposits on soft drink bottles. Obeid married Judith in 1965, is now father of 9 children and a grandfather of 28 grandchildren.

Morris Iemma (pron.: /ˈjɛmə/; born 21 July 1961), is a former Australian politician and 40th Premier of New South Wales, succeeding Bob Carr after he resigned on 3 August 2005. Iemma led the Australian Labor Party to victory in the 2007 election before resigning as Premier on 5 September 2008, and as a Member of Parliament on 19 September 2008.

Iemma was born in Sydney, the only child of Giuseppe and Maria Iemma, migrants from Martone, Calabria, Italy.

Nathan Rees MP, (born 12 February 1968),[1] an Australian politician, is the Shadow Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Shadow Minister for the Arts , was the 41st Premier of New South Wales and parliamentary leader of the New South Wales division of the Australian Labor Party from September 2008 to December 2009. Rees is a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Toongabbie for Labor since 2007.

Rees is a non-practising Roman Catholic, and proudly describes himself as "a westie".

Kristina Kerscher Keneally (born 19 December 1968) is a former Australian politician who was the 42nd Premier of New South Wales. She was elected leader of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales and thus Premier in 2009, but went on to lose government to the Liberal/National Coalition at the March 2011 state election...

Keneally was born Kristina Marie Kerscher in Las Vegas to an American father and an Australian-born mother. She lived briefly in Colorado but grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where she attended high school at Notre Dame Academy...

Upon graduating from Notre Dame, she undertook studies at the University of Dayton, also in Ohio. While there she became involved in student politics, and was involved in founding the National Association of Students at Catholic Colleges and Universities, serving as president of the group in 1990 and 1991... Keneally met her future husband, an Australian, Ben Keneally, at World Youth Day 1991...

Joseph Guerino "Joe" Tripodi (born 25 November 1967), a former Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Fairfield for the Australian Labor Party between 1995 and 2011. He was Minister for Finance, Infrastructure, Regulatory Reform, Ports and Waterways under former Premier Nathan Rees. He was a controversial figure during his time in politics, known as a factional boss, within the NSW Labor Right whose Terrigals sub-faction has twice dumped the sitting Labor Premier during 2007 and 2010.

A former New South Wales policeman turned state MP has denied describing some senior Hunter Valley officers as the "Catholic Mafia".

Nationals MP for the state seat of Dubbo Troy Grant has given evidence on the third day of the Special Commission of Inquiry into how New South Wales Police and the Maitland-Newcastle Diocese handled allegations of child sexual abuse by two priests.

Previously Detective Chief Inspector Peter Fox said Mr Grant described senior officers as the "Catholic Mafia" because they are "aligned to the church".

A businessman who paid $1,800 for a dinner to celebrate a coal deal has told the ICAC the dinner was not lavish.

The ICAC is in the final days of its investigation into the Doyles Creek mine licence given to former union official John Maitland and a group of entrepreneurs.

On Tuesday, Newcastle businessman Craig Ransley denied making false statements to help his company Doyles Creek Mining get the licence without a tender.

But the inquiry has previously heard after it was awarded on Christmas Eve 2008, he sent his business partners an estimate of the amount of coal in the mine that was five times more than the amount the company told the New South Wales Government.

In an email he said, "You will understand why I can't wipe the smile off my face. Merry bloody Christmas."

The inquiry has heard Mr Ransley invested $318,000 in the project and later profited $15 million, while Mr Maitland also profited $15 million, three years after investing $165,000 in the project.

Mr Ransley also denied that an $1,800 dinner for eight he paid for to celebrate the deal was lavish.

The dinner at the upmarket Catalina restaurant in Sydney in December 2008 was attended by minister Ian Macdonald to sign off on the licence.