Clive Palmer adviser Andrew Crook detained over raids linked to alleged kidnap
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Version 0 of 1. Clive Palmer’s senior adviser, Andrew Crook, has been detained by police in an investigation apparently linked to an alleged kidnapping of a bank executive. Palmer confirmed the raid on the Crook Media office in Brisbane, telling Guardian Australia he was initially concerned it had something to do with the Palmer United party’s Queensland state election campaign. Police have confirmed the raid was linked to the alleged kidnapping of an National Australia Bank executive in January 2013. “[Queensland premier Campbell] Newman’s police raided his office this morning under a search warrant, I went around to the office but was refused access,” Palmer said. A staff member from Crook’s office rang Palmer to inform him of the raid because the CBD office holds information relating to PUP. Crook, 48, was arrested by Queensland police during a raid on his home in Brisbane on Friday. He was then taken to his office. Queensland police said Taskforce Maxima’s criminal economy team had uncovered evidence resulting in the arrest of two men and the issuing of a warrant for the arrest of a third man. They had been investigating a separate matter at the time. They said the people arrested were a 51-year-old man from the Gold Coast and 48-year-old man from New Farm. The third man, aged 48, is not in Australia. Police said they were investigating Crook over an alleged attempt to coerce a witness in a civil case against property developer and former Sydney Swans AFL player Tony Smith. Police had heard claims that Crook and Smith lured the witness to Batam island, near Singapore, on the pretence of a possible job offer from Palmer. Palmer told Fairfax Radio on Friday he knew nothing of the allegations against Crook. “A search warrant doesn’t mean anything. There’s no charge against Mr Crook, he hasn’t been arrested for anything. He doesn’t know what he’s facing. We hope we’re not going back to the days when journalists were arrested like what happened in Egypt with Peter Greste for political purposes, but that’s something I’m concerned about.” He suggested Crook’s detention was part of a broad political conspiracy. “All of our records, plans and political strategies for the up and coming Queensland elections which will be held in a couple of months were contained in Mr Crook’s computers in his office and I’m concerned about the integrity of those, and the fact that they haven’t accidentally been deleted or passed on to people that shouldn’t have them.” Crook has a long working history with Palmer and has been his political media advisor since the PUP was formed in 2013. The website for his Brisbane-based company, Crook Media, refers to him as “one of Australia’s longest-serving, most trusted and comprehensive public relations consultants”. |