Queensland police officer made false claims about Virgin pilot after learning of his wife’s affair
A police officer’s shocking act against his wife’s lover after learning she was having an affair with his pilot boyfriend
- Woman had affair with Virgin Australia pilot
- Her cop husband found out and made false claims about him
An affair between a Virgin pilot and a police officer’s estranged wife led to him being grounded for months after the officer made false claims about him to the airline.
The lies against the pilot were exposed in the findings of a Queensland Civil Appeals Tribunal, which found the now-resigned officer also used “emotionally controlling behaviour” as a tool of domestic violence after discovering the affair.
He made a number of claims to the airline’s bosses, including that the pilot was colorblind and a heavy alcohol user, prompting his immediate suspension.
The pilot was suspended for months after the false claims were made against him
QCAT was asked by the ex-cop to review the findings of a separate internal Queensland Police investigation which found he had committed five counts of misconduct.
All but one instance of misconduct was substantiated last week by QCAT Acting Senior Member Ann Fitzpatrick.
The tribunal was told that the former officer had been asked for a divorce by his then-wife in July 2014.
A few days later, he discovered she was having an affair with the Virgin pilot, whom he had been friends with since 1999.
In early August, the former officer picked up his wife’s phone and read her texts and emails.
The tribunal admitted that given the “deeply personal and distressing” nature of the circumstances, most people would behave inappropriately.
The pilot and the officer’s ex-wife are now married.
The tribunal upheld QPS’s findings that the behavior amounted to domestic violence as it was a means of emotional control. In addition, the behavior of a police officer was not acceptable.
The tribunal heard the former officer threaten the pilot via email that he may “also have mandatory reporting obligations to CASA that a pilot for Virgin has dyslexic color bling (sic) and has chronic asthma.”
The officer contacted CASA’s senior medical officer a month later, claiming that the pilot was colorblind and had been operating under the influence of heavy alcohol.
The pilot was incapacitated for several months until he was cleared by medical examiners to resume flying.
In its decision, the tribunal stated that the charges were serious “because they involve an intentional act of victimization, cost and suffering to an individual, as well as cost to a commercial airline.”
The officer also used a false name and address to make a false claim about the pilot, telling Brisbane City Council on two occasions that the pilot was carrying out unauthorized construction work on his Brisbane home.
The tribunal also upheld QPS’s finding that the former officer had signed a false statement regarding domestic violence proceedings, and denied making the report.
The police officer and the woman are now divorced and she is married to the pilot (stock image)
Elsewhere, the tribunal reviewed a January 2017 incident in which the officer boasted, privately at his child’s school, to teachers that he had “put people in jail.”
While the tribunal acknowledged that the statement likely made teachers feel intimidated, it was dismissed as not misconduct.
“At worst, the statement was self-righteous and unnecessary,” the tribunal wrote.
The man – who has since been dismissed by Queensland Police – was also guilty of misconduct when he told a senior officer in late 2017 that he wanted to “jump over the table and hit you on the head” while being interviewed as part of the disciplinary process.
The tribunal ruled that the threat was immediately refuted by an apology, but the threat made to a superior officer constituted misconduct.
QCAT will review the sanctions at a later date.