Private investigator testifies at ICAC hearing

“Eggs on toast” and “a regular soy cap” were among the few audible things a private investigator secretly recorded while on a covert operation targeting the then-mayor of Strathfield at Deli Fresh cafe in December 2022.

Recording devices disguised as pens and cameras placed outside a block of flats were just some of the colourful details of the evidence given by private eye Shane De Kauwe at the Independent Commission Against Corruption on Tuesday.

His months of surveillance of mayor Matthew Blackmore have formed an allegation of potential blackmail and breaches of the Surveillance Devices Act levelled at former Strathfield councillor Sharangan Maheswaran, who hired De Kauwe.

According to the blurb promoting the Homebush cafe Deli Fresh, “the hum of casual chatter mixes gently with the soft clinks of cups and plates … it’s a spot that embraces the small, genuine moments.”

Unfortunately, the hum of casual chatter and breakfast orders drowned out the small, genuine moments of dodgy dealings that Maheswaran hoped his private eye had secretly recorded to force Blackmore to honour his pledge to hand over the mayoralty to Maheswaran’s Labor colleague Karen Pensabene.

Blackmore’s regular coffee companion was Antoine Doueihi, who had been forced out of the mayoralty the previous year for failing to disclose his property and business interests, the inquiry heard.

(Ironically, Maheswaran failed to declare his own association with property developer Jean Nassif, for whom he was working, when he filled in his nomination form for council.)

The cheerful P.I. told the commission he was very good friends with Liberal operative Jeremy Greenwood and lawyer Maheswaran, two of the key subjects in this long-running corruption inquiry code named Operation Rosny.

Over recent years, De Kauwe said, he had done a lot of work for Maheswaran, whom he described as Nassif’s “right-hand man”.

But back to the Deli Fresh cafe. De Kauwe told the commission he overheard Doueihi discussing with Blackmore how to use trust companies to hide payments. He said he thought he’d heard the amount $800,000. But while the secret recording devices picked up breakfast and coffee orders, the two men’s conversation was inaudible.

De Kauwe said after a discussion with his lawyer (Maheswaran), he was comfortable he and his client (Maheswaran) could mount a public interest defence to justify the secret recordings of the conversation.

In January 2023, Maheswaran used evidence of the lengthy surveillance, plus printouts of a “shit sheet,” to force Blackmore to resign as mayor. Sadly for Maheswaran, Blackmore, who is not accused of any wrongdoing, reported the whole unfortunate affair to the ICAC.

In other evidence to the commission, De Kauwe said he was still getting instructions from fugitive developer Nassif to conduct surveillance on Nassif’s enemies.

This was only months after Nassif had fled to Lebanon, his Toplace empire having collapsed in mid-2023 with debts of more than $1.6 billion.

In 2023, Nassif wanted him to surveil his perceived enemies: broadcaster Ray Hadley, police minister David Elliott and building commissioner David Chandler.

“Even after he’d gone to Lebanon, it appears he still wanted you to investigate Mr Chandler,” said counsel assisting, Juliet Curtin.

Asked why Nassif wanted this done, the ever chipper De Kauwe replied simply: “He hated him.”

After a day’s break, Maheswaran will return to the witness box on Wednesday.

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