Woman who helped bust pedophile sacked
THE woman who helped raise the alarm about disgraced former NSW Aboriginal affairs minister Milton Orkopoulos has been sacked by the state parliament from her electorate office job.
Orkopoulos was found guilty of 28 pedophilia and drug charges yesterday.
However Gillian Sneddon, Orkopoulos's former electorate officer in the Hunter seat of Swansea, who helped collect evidence from his office for police, had her employment terminated last month - the day she began to give evidence at the Orkopoulos trial, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
She had been on stress leave and is fighting a workers' compensation claim against parliament.
Premier Morris Iemma has said her situation is a matter for parliament.
Ms Sneddon told the Herald:
"If I had have kept my mouth shut, it would have been covered up.
"(The) treatment of me the whole way down the line, from the parliament, from my colleagues, from Labor politicians, (has) been a disgrace''.
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The way Iemma runs the state is a disgrace.
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Woman who helped bust pedophile sacked
from news.com.au
THE woman who helped raise the alarm about disgraced former NSW Aboriginal affairs minister Milton Orkopoulos has been sacked by the state parliament from her electorate office job.
Orkopoulos was found guilty of 28 pedophilia and drug charges yesterday.
However Gillian Sneddon, Orkopoulos's former electorate officer in the Hunter seat of Swansea, who helped collect evidence from his office for police, had her employment terminated last month - the day she began to give evidence at the Orkopoulos trial, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
She had been on stress leave and is fighting a workers' compensation claim against parliament.
Premier Morris Iemma has said her situation is a matter for parliament.
Ms Sneddon told the Herald: "If I had have kept my mouth shut, it would have been covered up.
"(The) treatment of me the whole way down the line, from the parliament, from my colleagues, from Labor politicians, (has) been a disgrace''.
Ms Sneddon has been on workers' compensation since being locked out of the office in late 2006 while assisting police retrieve evidence in the case, the Herald reported.
MP Milton Orkopoulos on suicide watch
from news.com.au
CONVICTED pedophile and former NSW Minister Milton Orkopoulos was last night on suicide watch at high security Silverwater Jail after being found guilty of 28 child sex and drugs charges.
An ashen-faced and distressed Orkopoulos was taken from holding cells in Newcastle Court House late yesterday afternoon to a solitary jail cell at the Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre at Silverwater, where he is under 24-hour guard for his own protection and that of other inmates.
There were concerns last night that, as a convicted child molester, he was a prime candidate to be bashed in jail.
The conviction of the former Aboriginal affairs minister yesterday has embroiled the State Government in a controversy unprecedented in NSW political history, with accusations a number of MPs and even ministers may have been alerted to suspicions about Orkopoulos as long ago as 2004, but failed to act.
Last night the Opposition was demanding Premier Morris Iemma reveal which MPs had learned of allegations against Orkopoulos - first promoted to Cabinet in August 2005 - while he was under investigation and before he was charged in November 2006.
Mr Iemma refused to comment, claiming until Orkopoulos was sentenced, it was still a matter before the courts.
It is understood authorities fear Orkopoulos may attempt to take his own life, after he was found unconscious in his car from ingesting garden chemicals in a failed suicide bid when he was first charged in late 2006.
A Corrective Services spokesman said cells within the high-security wing were "very bare", with just a bed, wash basin and toilet.
He will remain in his cell until Thursday when he will be sentenced, potentially to 14 years prison.
It was a stunning fall from grace for the former ALP minister who, prior to being charged, was used to the lavish surrounds of Parliament House and the perks that came with being a minister.
An 11-person jury found the father-of-three guilty of having sex with young boys and supplying them with drugs including heroin and cannabis.
The jury took just over a day to reach its verdict.
With sweat dripping from his brow, Orkopoulos shook his head and screwed up his face in disbelief as the foreman read the jury's decision on the charges.
At times Orkopoulos leaned on the wooden railing of the dock for support, as he grew pale and looked physically ill.
After the verdict, he bowed his head as he was handcuffed and led from the dock to a holding cell.
While having a cigarette earlier, Orkopoulos told The Daily Telegraph he was looking forward to spending today with his family, and was hoping his favourite meal would be on the lunch menu - his sister-in-law's shepherd's pie.
The six-man and five-woman jury acquitted Orkopoulos of just two charges, one of supplying cannabis and another of having homosexual intercourse with a male aged between 10 and 18.
Judge Ralph Coolahan will begin sentencing proceedings on Thursday.
The most serious charge Orkopoulos was convicted of, sexual intercourse without consent, carries a maximum jail term of 14 years.
Orkopoulos' family, who have been a strong presence at court throughout the four-week trial, were not present when the verdict was read.
Last night, they kept a vigil at his elderly mother's Newcastle home, where Orkopoulos has been living for the past 18 months since he was first charged and placed on bail.
The family declined to comment on the verdict, saying Orkopoulos was considering appealing the decision.
Throughout the four-week trial, the jury was told Orkopoulos employed "sordid genius" to lure young and vulnerable boys, and then exploit them.
Outside the court, Chief Inspector Brad Tayler, who led the investigation, thanked the three victims of Orkopoulos for standing up and speaking out.
Sneddon says her dismissal is a disgrace
Victoria Owens & Richard Maxton
Gillian Sneddon was one of the driving forces bringing damning evidence against her former employer Milton Orkopoulos.
Ms Sneddon helped convict Orkopoulos, collecting evidence for police during her time as his electorate officer in the Hunter seat of Swansea.
But telling the truth meant she paid the ultimate price with her career. She was sacked on the day she began to give evidence in the child sex and drugs trial.
Ms Sneddon has since labelled her sacking as a disgrace and maintains revealing the scandal was the right thing to do.
"If I had not told the truth I would still have my job, but Milton would still be the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs."
"I'd like to know the reason why Robert Coombs didn't want me to work in his office.
"I believe it was because I told the truth. Or he's been perhaps even warned off me by head office of the ALP."
"I'm not going to get well until all of the people concerned, their antics are exposed."
Opposition leader Barry O'Farrell says it is unacceptable to treat a witness in this way.
"The public will be shocked that the very person who unmasked Milton Orkopoulos and led to his conviction as a pedophile has been sacked.
"This is not the way whistleblowers are meant to be treated and it's certainly not the way we should treat someone who's helped put a pedophile behind bars."
Mr O'Farrell has demanded to know who knew about allegations made against Orkopoulos and why Labor MP's didn't contact police.
Former MP Bryce Gaudry has admitted he was told about the allegations against Orkopoulos a year before his arrest, but did not go to police.
Mr Gawdry said he doesn't regret keeping quiet, claiming when he questioned his former colleague about the allegations a year before his arrest, Orkopoulos said he had contacted police himself.
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