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Speaker 1: We know that the Northern Territories Anti Corruption Commissioner has

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Speaker 1: broken his silence so over allegations of domestic violence, rejecting

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Speaker 1: accusations made by his ex wife and vowing to return

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Speaker 1: to his job. The Independent Commissioner against Corruption, Michael Richards,

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Speaker 1: has been on indefinitely since his ex wife, Jennifer Riches,

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Speaker 1: went public with allegations that she'd been subjected to emotional

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Speaker 1: abuse during their nine year marriage. Mister Richards has provided

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Speaker 1: a lengthy written statement exclusively to Sky News. Sky News

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Speaker 1: Bureau chief Matt Cullingham joins me on the line. Good

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Speaker 1: morning to you, Matt, Katie. Matt, what has mister Richards

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Speaker 1: had to say following the allegations by his ex wife.

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Speaker 2: Well, I think there are a couple of things that

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Speaker 2: are pretty important that he wanted to get on the records,

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Speaker 2: and accusations that he didn't make the proper disclosures around

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Speaker 2: this matter.

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Speaker 1: Occurred.

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Speaker 2: So what is detailed in his statement and what he's

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Speaker 2: also confirmed by providing the documentary evidence is that he

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Speaker 2: did immediately report this matter to both the office of

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Speaker 2: the then Chief Minister, Natasha Phile than to the Ikak Inspector.

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Speaker 2: There's been some reporting that suggested that he failed to

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Speaker 2: do that. He failed to do that in an attempt

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Speaker 2: to hold on to his job. Well, what his statement

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Speaker 2: says and what the documentary evidence confirms, is that immediately

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Speaker 2: when he was served with his application for domestic violence

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Speaker 2: order on the nine eighth of May last year, he

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Speaker 2: emailed Gabby Mappis, the chief of staff of Natasha Philes,

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Speaker 2: the Chief Minister at the time, and sort of meeting

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Speaker 2: she replied, A meeting was confirmed for three pm the

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Speaker 2: next Tuesday. Subsequently canceled that meeting after that matter was

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Speaker 2: resolved out of court. Those issues have been well intelate.

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Speaker 2: But he also confirmed and provided documentation that showed that

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Speaker 2: the day after he was served with that application. So

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Speaker 2: it was served to him on a Friday evening, but

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Speaker 2: he immediately emailed Gaby Mappers. The very next day, he

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Speaker 2: emailed the inspector and the iach, Bruce McClinton, and informed

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Speaker 2: him of what had happened and in fact asked if

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Speaker 2: he should resign. So, I think you know, one thing

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Speaker 2: that this statement has certainly revealed is that this idea

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Speaker 2: that he didn't properly disclose what was going on is

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Speaker 2: not correct and that's proven by the documentary evidence.

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Speaker 1: And that what did he have to say in regarding

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Speaker 1: the coheresive control and security cameras.

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Speaker 2: Well, those allegations that were made by his ex wife Jennifer.

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Speaker 2: He says that those security cameras were all in the

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Speaker 2: home by the NT government and they were for that

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Speaker 2: very reason for security security that was required as the

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Speaker 2: IKAC commissioner, and he says that was what they were

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Speaker 2: used for. And he says that the inspector has told

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Speaker 2: him that his report has found no evidence of wrongdoing

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Speaker 2: in relation to his use of those camerasalvation that he

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Speaker 2: was using those cameras to basically monitor her as part

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Speaker 2: of his controlling behavior. So he categorically denies that allegation.

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Speaker 2: In regard to the broader issue of the domestic violence

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Speaker 2: and the controlling behavior that she has alleged, well, he

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Speaker 2: just says that he has a very different perspective on

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Speaker 2: those events. I think he was paying not to personally

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Speaker 2: attacking former wife. And he did say that he wishes

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Speaker 2: her well and that he hopes that that she's getting

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Speaker 2: the help that she needs. But he did say, you know,

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Speaker 2: and he made the point that he didn't want to

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Speaker 2: make light of the issue of domestic violence or of

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Speaker 2: the issue of sort of coercive control or that sort

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Speaker 2: of controlling behavior. But he does deny the allegation. He

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Speaker 2: says he has a very different perspective, very very different

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Speaker 2: view of what occurred in those matters.

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Speaker 1: Seems to have lost her there for a moment, Matt,

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Speaker 1: what was that? Just having some issues there with Matt

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Speaker 1: Cunningham's phone line. We may have lost him. Can you

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Speaker 1: hear us?

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Speaker 2: Matt, Sorry, Katie, I can hear you now? No. No,

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Speaker 2: he was just saying that he didn't want to. I

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Speaker 2: was just repeating what I said before, that he didn't

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Speaker 2: want to basically get in, you know, to publicly detegrate her,

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Speaker 2: but just that he had a very different view, a

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Speaker 2: very different perspective. I think of the words that he

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Speaker 2: used on on the events as she had alleged them.

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Speaker 1: And Matt, has there been any indication from the IK

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Speaker 1: Commissioner based on that lengthy statement that he's provided to

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Speaker 1: you to Sky News on what his plans are next?

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Speaker 1: Is he going to be returning to work?

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Speaker 2: Well, he plans to, and he says he hopes to,

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Speaker 2: and he says he has important work that he needs

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Speaker 2: to do. Is obviously on leave at the moment, he's

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Speaker 2: been unwell. I'm not sure how soon he plans to

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Speaker 2: return to work, whether it's in the next couple of

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Speaker 2: weeks or whether it will be it will be longer

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Speaker 2: than that, but certainly that that is his intention. That

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Speaker 2: is his stated intention. He is to return to the job.

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Speaker 2: I think if people were of the view that he

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Speaker 2: might be considering his resignation, I think he made it

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Speaker 2: pretty clear at the moment that that's not the case.

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Speaker 1: And what of the situation regarding the request for spousal maintenance.

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Speaker 2: Well, this is interesting as well, Katie. Obviously, there have

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Speaker 2: been reports that he paid his exif twenty thousand dollars

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Speaker 2: basically in return for her dropping that domestic violence order application.

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Speaker 2: He's basically set out in his statement a timeline of

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Speaker 2: the events and how they occurred. Now. He says that

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Speaker 2: these events have been began when she made a demand

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Speaker 2: for thirty thousand dollars and on the same day that

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Speaker 2: domestic violence application in the daral And Local Course. It

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Speaker 2: was subsequent to that that his lawyers then responded to

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Speaker 2: her and said that he would pay her twelve thousand

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Speaker 2: dollars plus one thousand dollars every fortnight for eight weeks

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Speaker 2: on the condition that he remained in his job as

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Speaker 2: the IACH commissioner, and pointed out in that letter that

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Speaker 2: if that DVO application was to proceed, it would be

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Speaker 2: almost certain that he wouldn't remain in his job as

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Speaker 2: the KACH commissioner. So that's the sequence of events as

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Speaker 2: they played out. And then of course she agreed to

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Speaker 2: those terms. That was more than twelve months ago. They've

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Speaker 2: since been going through a property settlement which I think

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Speaker 2: was resolved recently or close to resolved recently. And now

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Speaker 2: in the last couple of weeks we've seen we've seen

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Speaker 2: Jennifer Rich has come forward publicly with some of these allegations.

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Speaker 1: Well, Matt Cunningham from Sky News, it is. It certainly

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Speaker 1: sounds like a bitter situation. I appreciate your time this morning.

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Speaker 1: Thank you very much for having a chat with us.

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Speaker 2: Why Katie, Thank you