Ben Roberts-Smith was “prepared to lie under oath” in his defamation trial, evidence of his “consciousness of guilt”, lawyers for the newspapers he is suing have told the federal court, accusing him of being the “architect or the knowing beneficiary of … dishonest collusion”.
Roberts-Smith’s long-running defamation case is hearing concluding submissions, and lawyers for the newspapers, who have alleged he committed war crimes in Afghanistan while serving in the SAS, have said the Victoria Cross recipient lied, and colluded with other witnesses in an attempt to bolster his alleged untruth, in relation to matters relevant to an allegation of murder.