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SA Police officer tells Father John Fleming’s defamation trial she felt claims against him went nowhere without a confession from him
A POLICE officer investigating unsubstantiated sex claims made against Father John Fleming agreed the case “was not going anywhere” without an admission or confession, a court has heard.
In the Supreme Court today, SA Police Brevet Sergeant Melissa Worden agreed she told Fr Fleming, during a formal 2009 interview, she felt there would be “no action” against him.
Andrew Harris, QC, for the Sunday Mail — which is being sued, by Fr Fleming, for defamation — asked Br Sgt Worden how she had approached the interview.
“When you went into this investigation, absent a confession from Fr Fleming, did you believe that it was unlikely that this matter would go further?” he asked.
“At the time you were asking (him) questions, you had a belief that, absent an admission, that it probably wasn’t going anywhere further.
“Was that your belief, that it probably wouldn’t go anywhere?”
Br Sgt Worden replied: “Yes.”
Fr Fleming’s case centres on a series of 2008 Sunday Mail articles reporting allegations he was inappropriately sexually involved with two women known as “Jane” and “Jenny”, and a man known as “Richard”.
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