The military history of Townsville’s controversial new mayor is under investigation by an independent local government watchdog that assesses complaints about Queensland councillors.
The former One Nation candidate and Townsville mayor, Troy Thompson, laid out his military history on Facebook earlier this year. He said that he joined “109 sigs” as a signalman – an army member responsible for military communications – in 1989 when he lived in Perth, before joining “105 sigs” and later “152 sigs” prior to leaving the army.
Since being sworn in as mayor earlier this month, Thompson’s Facebook posts about his military history, as well as other posts made during his campaign, have been deleted from his page.
In an interview with the North Queensland Freedom Network in February, Thompson said he spent five years in the military in Perth serving in signal units in Karakatta, Fremantle and “SAS Swanbourne”.
Thompson posted a video on Facebook last week after he was approached by the media at an Anzac Day ceremony and asked to provide his service number to prove his military service.
“I am actively looking to get this number to put the questions about my service to bed,” Thompson said.
“When I have this, I’m happy to make this available or talk to people. I’ve addressed questions about my personal life ongoingly. I’ve answered these questions respectfully and will continue to do so, until I’m shown disrespect.”
Thompson told the North Queensland Freedom Network he got his “fighting style” from his mother and father, who he said served for 20 and 25 years in the army respectively.
A spokesperson for Queensland’s local government department said it had referred the matter to the Office of the Independent Assessor for investigation.
“The [office] is an independent statutory body that has significant power and discretion under the Local Government Act,” the spokesperson said.
“[It] undertakes the initial assessment of all complaints about councillor conduct in Queensland.”
A spokesperson from the office of the Townsville mayor told Guardian Australia that Thompson had “made a personal information request to the Department of Defence to obtain his service information”.
“Mayor Thompson has committed to making information available, once received,” the spokesperson said.
