A senior Lake Illawarra policeman on trial in the NSW District Court over allegations he asked his ex-girlfriend to lie for him has taken the stand in his own defence case, emphatically denying any criminal wrong doing.
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Inspector Ron Davis is facing charges of accessing restricted data and perverting the course of justice amid allegations he asked a fellow officer to unlawfully access the NSW COPS database on his behalf on May 2, 2016 to learn the vehicle registration of his estranged defacto and the mother of his then-newborn child, Nicole Haywood.
It is alleged he had the officer perform the task under the guise of reporting an apparent tailgating incident by an unknown car that afternoon on Memorial Drive, and only discovered it was Ms Haywood’s vehicle after it came up on the COPS database.
Ms Haywood has previously denied even seeing Davis’ car on the roadway at the time, let alone tailgating it. Prosecutors will allege there was no tailgating incident and that Davis made up the story to make his use of the database appear lawful.
When Davis’ actions became the subject of a formal police complaint, it is alleged he asked Ms Haywood to sign an affidavit falsely admitting her involvement in the tailgating, which would have helped his case by legitimising his access to the database.
However Davis rejected suggestions he had made the driving incident up or that he had asked Ms Haywood to sign a false affidavit about it when questioned in court on Monday.
He claimed Ms Haywood had admitted tailgating him that day but said she didn’t want to speak to police for fear of incriminating herself.
“She said ‘I was there but I don’t want to incriminate myself’,” Davis said of a conversation the pair had about the affidavit in June 2016.
“She said ‘I was day dreaming, I didn’t realise I was up behind your car until it was too late’.”
“I told her ‘….just give your version [to police]….just say the version you have said, tell the truth’.”
Davis’ answer to other allegations put to him:
*That he spent every night shift sleeping at home: “That’s completely untrue”.
*That he took DNA from his daughter to do a home paternity test: “Yes. We’d been on and off and she hadn’t identified the father on any documents.”
*That he was ‘intent’ on discovering the whereabouts of his ex-partner: “Yes. I was worried about the welfare of the child.”
*That he was physically abusive to Ms Haywood during their relationship: “Those are vexatious and false complaints”.
*That he posted an appeal seeking Ms Haywood’s whereabouts on his private Facebook page: “I was worried she could put the child up for adoption.”
The trial continues.
