City council denies AFP documents seizure claim
Adelaide City Council has denied a media report that Australian Federal Police officers recently entered Town Hall and seized documents.
Adelaide City Council says the AFP did not enter Town Hall and seize documents. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily
On Tuesday, FIVEaa’s Breakfast with David and Will show said it had received a tip that AFP searched the Adelaide City Council offices on April 23.
“I’ve been told that two officers went in, it wasn’t, you wouldn’t call it a raid, you know, they didn’t arrive with battering rams or anything like that,” co-host David Penberthy said.
“It may have been something that was organised in a civil fashion in advance, but I’ve been told that they seized documents, what those documents relate to is anyone’s guess.”
The show also referred to a white BMW “with AFP signage on the dashboard” which its shared on its Facebook livestream.
The image of the white BMW was shared on FIVEaa’s Facebook live stream on Tuesday. The video is still available to watch back, with this image appearing at 2:08:11.
“It’s pretty weird to have, you know, any tier of government attracting the presence of the Australian Federal Police yet there it is, for some mystifying reason, as evidenced by that photograph that we’re sharing now on the live stream,” Penberthy said.
But Adelaide City Council said the AFP did not enter Town Hall or seize documents and that the council had not received any AFP requests for access to council records.
“The suggestion of a document haul appears to be another example of fake news,” Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith told InDaily.
The council also said it is not unusual for AFP vehicles to be parked near Town Hall.
The radio show referred to a current court case involving former councillor Alexander Hyde, the Electoral Commission and current councillor Jing Li, but the council said the AFP was not involved and there was no linked investigation into the council.
The AFP told InDaily no documents had been seized from the council.
Hyde originally petitioned the court in December 2022 to declare the Central Ward election void, alleging “illegal practices” and “voter harvesting” contributed to his narrow loss to Li.
A verdict has not yet been reached, with Hyde’s legal team urging the court to reopen the trial in April, which led to the council being subpoenaed for access to emails between Li and City of Adelaide staff.
FIVEaa was contacted for comment.
