It's Cape rape by Silverstone's star CCC complainant

More about Bill Mitchell - Silverstone's CCC complainant and Labor MLC Adele Farina's good mate

Bill Mitchell the environmentalist, ageing surfie, Corruption and Crime Commission 'complainant' and ABC 4 Corners 'star' informant had his own exposé by Sunday Times writer Janet Wainwright a while back.

This is what seasoned hack Janet Wainwright said about Bill Mitchell and his partner:

"Developers who encroached into the Leeuwin Naturaliste National Park and damaged vegetation have been given the go-ahead to build four houses.

This is despite Conservation and Land Management (CALM) condemning the siting of the houses as 'most unsuitable'.

The Gracetown Progress Association, Cape to Cape Alliance and Leeuwin Conservation Group are irate that despite the developers putting in earthworks without council permission and damaging the park, they have been allowed to proceed.

Bill Mitchell admitted that sand pads up to 10m high had been put on the ridge without building permission and there had been some damage to adjoining park vegetation by the contractor.

'We had planning permission. I did not realise building permission was needed. It was a mistake.' he said. [To which the Desert Rat would respond: "What dissembling bullshit - a seasoned developer not knowing the difference?!"]

Mr Mitchell is building the houses in Juniper Road for his family and his partner because of the potential loss of ocean views from Mr Mitchell's property at nearby Smiths Beach.

He bought 104ha adjoining the Leeuwin Naturaliste National Park for $1.2 million in 1994 after getting council assurance that he could site the houses on the ridge.

[The Desert Rat may take readers on a virtual tour of this gross grandiose mansion - at a later date. The 490 square metre house took around two years of construction worth more than $2 million. Its render is a special feature, inappropriately described as (feral) camel-coloured but looks more like baby-shit yellow to the Desert Rat - who sees camels and dodges camel dung daily.]

While admitting damaging the vegetation was a breach of the National Park regulations, he said the damage was minor and was being rehabilitated.

'An area of National Park was damaged - not cleared - by a rubber tyred scraper,' Mitchell said.

CALM's Regional Manager for Bunbury, Bob Chandler, said CALM stood by its original advice that the building sites were the worst possible on the block for the protection of landscape values on the ridge, but but the council had planning powers.

In a detailed submission on December 14 1998 following the unauthorised (10m high) sand pads, Mr Chandler drew attention to the Cape to Cape Walk within the National Park, which is 500 metres from one (10m high) sand pad.

The spokesperson for the the Cape to Cape Alliance and the Leeuwin Conservation Group, Bill Meiklejohn, said that council's own planning policy was that 'no development should be permitted that would affect the landscape'.

As late as February the council's planning committee recommended the sand pads should be removed and plans rejected. [Now there's a job for the CCC which they won't want to know about.]

Gracetown Progress Association Wayne Baddock said the council had not paid enough attention to the area.

'There should never have been approval for buildings directly adjoining CALM land on a sensitive area of the ridge.'

Council chief executive Max Eastcott said in hindsight the zoning was inappropriate and there should have been some landscape protection."

The Desert Rat wonders just how much homework Mike Silverstone did before he rushed into the Smiths Beach inquiry fiasco. It was too good to be true Mike! Don't ever let the facts or background get in the way for a sensational public "investigation" or "story" - to lift the profile of the CCC.

Let's hope that some day, CCC chief clown Mike Silverstone has to come out of hiding and publicly explain his incompetence.

Smiths Beach: How the CCC and Silverstone were manipulated. Part 2

The Players: Bill Mitchell. The Links between Smiths Beach Action Group and competing developers.

This article is the second in a series that shows how the Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) was manipulated by greedy developers that wanted to maintain their control of development in the Busselton Shire area.

Bill Mitchell, the second and pivotal player is also a spokesperson for the Smiths Beach Action Group (SBAG). Like Merrifield, Bill Mitchell is also a significant property developer and landholder in the Busselton Shire area and has played a much more public role than Kevin Merrifield in his opposition to the Smiths Beach development.

Bill Mitchell was one of the SBAG spokespersons depicted as an ageing surfie and environmentalist when interviewed at the beach side by ABC TV's Four Corners program. There was no mention of Bill Mitchell being a significant property developer and landowner in the area. During that interview, Mitchell claimed credit for making the Smiths Beach complaint to the CCC?

Bill Mitchell lives in a grandiose house on a prominent ridge above the Smiths Beach overlooking the the bay and David McKenzie's proposed development. Mitchell was involved in the development of four properties on the top of the ridge and has retained at least one for himself.

Bill Mitchell will look down on the Smiths Beach development area and it will affect Mitchell's beautiful panoramic view of the bay, the natural surrounds and the now undeveloped private land on which David McKenzie wishes to develop for a range of accommodation.

The Smiths Beach development is not allowed to obscure the view from any of the five or six ridges below Mitchell's much higher ridge. How did Bill Mitchell get approval to build on a ridge which breaks the skyline? Different rules for different people?

Interestingly, Bill Mitchell's property on top of the ridge has a restrictive covenant which prevents the clearing of natural vegetation. It now has rows of planted olive trees and pines. The Busselton Shire Council advised Mitchell was in breach of the covenant but he has done nothing about it and strangely, the Shire have not pursued to breach with any vigour.

Mitchell also built a house at Cowaramup for himself in 2004 and during construction rock from the excavation spilled over into the adjacent CALM reserve. He was prosecuted but came to an arrangement with CALM.

Bill Mitchell was the developer behind Regency Park on the site of the old Greenacres Caravan Park located 1 to 2km west of Dunsborough. Mitchell tried to get the beach privatised! The development was to be prestige apartments and homes and the reason he sought a private beach was that "schoolies" were detrimental to an up-market estate. About a dozen beautiful trees in the development mysteriously died overnight.

Mitchell was responsible for the development, some would say environmental vandalism of the beautiful Gunyulgup Valley some 5 to 6kms from Smiths Beach. This pristine area was sub-divided into 80 to 100 large individual lots.

It was Bill Mitchell pictured on Smiths Beach with the opportunistic Geoff Gallop 3 weeks prior to the 2000 election with Allanah McTiernan and Adele Farina, the latter at least seems to have a very close working relationship with Mitchell. More of than anon.

Mitchell and Merrifield had two meeting with Allanah McTiernan and Adele Farina and there was at least one private dinner held in Mitchell house on the ridge overlooking Smiths Beach. McTiernan refused to meet with David McKenzie to allow him to put his case.

Brian Burke and Norm Marlborough played a role in getting the reluctant Allanah McTiernan, later as the Minister for Planning, to meet with the frustrated David McKenzie the proponent of Smith Beach development who had been 'locked out' of all discussions with the Minister.

Bill Mitchell claimed in the ABC TV Four Corners interview that he was the person who initiated the Smiths Beach CCC investigation. The Desert Rat has been told that he openly bragged about being the "whistle blower".

If so, what then did Bill Mitchell tell Senior Investigator Mark Raymond Ingham and Executive Director Mike Silverstone of the CCC, that was of such gravity for the required affidavits to successfully apply to have phone tapped, bugs placed in the houses and camera surveillance of Brian Burke, Julian Grill and David McKenzie for three years? The Desert Rat has been told by a highly placed source, which is difficult to verify, that Kevin Merrifield and Bill Mitchell met with Jim McGinty about the Smiths Beach lobbyists and McGinty is alleged to have advised them to take the matter to the CCC.

A simple denial that none of these three met or discussed Smiths Beach lobbyists would put that allegation to rest.

The thickening plot lends itself to a remake of 'How Green was my Valley'.

Smiths Beach: How the CCC and Silverstone were manipulated. Part 1

Links between Smiths Beach Action Group and competing developers. The Players - Kevin Merrifield

Research by the Desert Rat shows how the Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) was manipulated by greedy developers that wanted to maintain their control of development in the Busselton Shire area.

Who are the players behind the Smiths Beach Action Group (SBAG)? What do we know about these prominent spokespersons for the SBAG, one of whom was Kevin Merrifield; another was Bill Mitchell, who has claimed credit for making the complaint to the CCC?

The Smiths Beach Action Group's inaugural chairperson was Kevin Merrifield and was one of three spokespersons for the SBAG. Kevin Merrifield was probably the biggest developer in the Busselton area and the surrounding 25 km.

Merryfield developed the Busselton shopping centre as well as many other tacky shopping centres in regional WA including the the eyesore Newman, Carnarvon and Esperance shopping centres - the latter a big disappointment that didn't live up to expectations for parking, landscaping and visual amenity.

His partner in many earlier developments was Kerry Stokes, until they fell out.

Kevin Merrifield lives at Millbrook a beautiful property about 5 km from Smiths Beach which is the site of an old mill. It he subdivided the picturesque property into 25 lots in about 2002.

Merrifield describes himself in the CCC hearings and transcripts as a retired property developer but makes regular presentations to the Busselton Shire Council. Merrifield is still one of the most significant landholders and property developers in the area.

The Smiths Beach Action Group seems to have a close relationship with the Busselton Shire Council and they seem to be able to obtain information from the Busselton Shire Council that is not normally available to other members of the public.

The ABC TV program Four Corners depicted these ageing SBAG spokespersons as surfies and environmentalists when interviewed near the beach in the surfies gear. There was no mention of any being significant property developers and landowners.

Are many of these protagonists wolves in sheep clothing?

In following posts the Desert Rat will examine the background and role of other competing developer from the Smiths Beach Action Group.

Remorse, restitution and rehabilitation not enough - so in with the Silverstone slipper

Silverstone wreaks savage retribution as well, on world renowned piano tuner.

The Desert Rat was appalled that the Corruption and Crime Commission used all its resources to drag a penitent Walter Haass before the courts.

Walter Haass stole a $20 000 Steinway piano some 12 years ago from the University of WA music school, after succumbing to a gambling addiction.

Months later Walter Haas told the school about his misdeed and came to an informal arrangement to cover the loss. Haass completed his part of the bargain and his unpaid work more than covered the cost of the loss to the university.

Haas overcame his gambling addiction, was remorseful (as he reported the offence himself) and had made restoration. All the ingredients of restorative justice, the Desert Rat would have thought.

Ten years later Brigadier Mike Silverstone and the crew down at Dad's Army saw this as a great opportunity to stamp out corruption and unorganised crime.

Haass defence lawyer Mark Andrews told the court that "an unknown party with an axe to grind" had brought the matter to the CCC's attention some 10 years after the offence was committed.

Haass was fined afurther $4500. He had not offended before or since the solitary offence.

Well done Mike Silverstone! We owe you our heartfelt gratitude for saving us from these vicious criminal types who must be up to other "no good" business - perhaps even organised crime. Just what did he really do with that piano?

The Desert Rat thinks a Military Medal should be awarded to Mike Silverstone for this CCC triumph.

CCC (taxpayers) to pay $19149 Legal Fees and Court Cost to Julian Grill

Court Costs - a win for truth and integrity over malice.

The Desert Rat suspects that Julian Grill and his wife Lesley are not about to travel to the south of France to spend the $19 149 costs that were awarded to them for legal fees and court costs in yesterday's acquittal.

The Desert Rat has the sad duty to inform punters that all this gratefully received money will disappear into the black hole of legal fees. Even though this was Silverstone's and Roberts-Smith first group of charges against Julian Grill - and their first embarrassing failure, Grill's legal fees are known to be well over $300 000 already and mounting.

This legal bill has accumulated over the three year that Silverstone has been desperately trying to justify the estimated $50 million his outfit the CCC has wasted trying to find some evidence of corruption against Julian Grill.

There is a formula that magistrates use to calculate costs and it not meant to cover all costs by the successful defendant. In this case it will cover about 5% of Grill's costs to date.

The Desert Rat thinks that Mike Silverstone would be less reckless if he was spending or wasting his own money on these nasty actions - instead of frivolously spending taxpayers funds.

If Silverstone was to be sued by his victims, Silverstone's costs would unfortunately be paid for by the State and taxpayers. We all lose.

All Brigadier Silverstone of the Children Overboard infamy can only lose, is he remaining credibility. Some would argue that is little for him to lose.

Magistrate: Grill "a witness of truth".

Third group of CCC charges thrown out in CCC Smith's Beach "House of Cards" Inquiry and Report

Julian Grill was yesterday cleared of two charges of giving false testimony at the Corruption and Crime Commission's Smith's Beach hearings about 3 years ago.

Magistrate Wheeler said Grill was a witness of truth and any erroneous answers are understandable given the circumstances. He said Mr Grill had little input into the proposed Smith's Beach development and was in the USA for most of the 4 weeks of the deferral of the town planning amendment .

Magistrate Wheeler said he had watched a video of Mr Grill's evidence and declared him to be studious, respectful and trying to answer correctly.

Julian Grill was awarded cost of $19 149.

Smug Brigadier Mike Children Overboard Silverstone, Senior "Investigator" Mark Ingham and the antique, sphinx-like Major General Roberts-Smith have suffered another humiliating defeat.

Every finding of the phoney Smith Beach Inquiry has already been discredited and their dodgy practices exposed. Also the vindictive and malicious false testimony charges belatedly made against Mike Allen, David McKenzie and Julian Grill, by the CCC incompetents to save face - have been thrown out of Court.

Read the latest Eastern States comment on VexNews.

Organised crime out of control in Perth

Cage fighter fears for safety after Molotov attack

The West Australian 2nd March 2009, 12:00 WST

"The manager of a Northbridge gym fire-bombed overnight, star cage fighter Brian Ebersole, says he believes organised crime is out of control in Perth and he fears for his safety."

This story in today's The West Australian makes the Desert Rat wonders why the Corruption and Crime Commission and Police can't get their act together and tackle organised crime.

The CCC it seems would rather be in hot pursuit of a miscreant middle aged piano tuner. The CCC believed the piano tuner presented a serious challenge for them because he was armed with a tuning fork and therefore must have had a concealed knife.

The CCC requested the assistance police tactical response group because of the danger involved.

The police refused to help saying the CCC were operationally inept and a security risk.

Brigadier Mike Silverstone the Executive Director of the CCC said he will be forced to subdue the piano tuner with our own CCC militia. The resources involved he said will make it impossible for the CCC to interview Mr Brian Ebersole and risk tackling organised crime at any time in the near future.