Australia, Analyst denies leaking secret cop reports

OFF THE WIRE
BY: Andrew Drummond
Source: news.smh.com.au
Police analyst Terry Gregoriou was "stunned" to learn his best mate had alleged bikie links and felt his world "crash around him" when he was charged with professional misconduct, a Sydney court has heard.
The 33-year-old from Dean Park in Sydney's northwest denies sharing with his friend Peter Vasilly confidential information to which he had high-level access as a civilian employee of NSW Police.
During a committal hearing at Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday, Gregoriou could not explain how documents he printed related to a bikie gang were found in the possession of Mr Vasilly, who had alleged links to the rival Comanchero gang.
Story continues below Gregoriou faces seven charges including the unlawful disclosure of confidential police intelligence and theft.
In court on Wednesday, he described Mr Vasilly, an Australian taekwondo representative whom he has known for 20 years, as his "best mate".
On December 2, 2009, Gregoriou admitted receiving a text message from Mr Vasilly inviting him to a poker game at the real estate agency where he worked but Gregoriou did not attend because it was his daughter's birthday.
A couple of weeks later while at work at Parramatta, Gregoriou became aware of an intelligence report naming Mr Vasilly and referring to the poker game and its participants, some of whom had alleged links to bikie gangs.
"When I saw this information I was taken back a bit. I was shocked because it linked Peter to possibly illegal people," Gregoriou told the court.
"And the reason I printed (the document) is because I wanted to take it away and think about what I was going to do."
Gregoriou denied showing the document to Mr Vasilly or discussing its contents with him, although the pair did meet later that day.
When asked how the document came to have Mr Vasilly's fingerprints on it when it was discovered by police during a search of Gregoriou's home, the accused answered: "I don't know":
"I suggest to you that Mr Vasilly's fingerprints came onto that document when you gave it to him so he could have a look at what it says," prosecutor Amanda Brady said.
"No," Gregoriou replied.
Gregoriou told the court that after considering the matter, he had decided to report his conflict of interest to his supervisor but was arrested before he could do so.
One of the charges against Gregoriou is based on the alleged discovery of a confidential police document in the glovebox of Mr Vasilly's car which had been printed by Gregoriou.
The document detailed the release from prison of a man with links to the Finks bikie gang and his known associates.
"Do you agree that somebody in a rival outlaw motorcycle gang might find some of the information in this report interesting if they were trying to locate associates of the Finks motorcycle gang?" Ms Brady asked.
"Yes," Gregoriou replied.
He said he had not known of Mr Vasilly's bikie gang association prior to viewing the report and was "stunned" and "shocked" as a result.
"The world was crashing around me ... I've been accused of serious offences ... I never thought I would get into trouble for doing my job. I was scared," Gregoriou said.
The hearing will continue on Thursday before Magistrate Lee Gilmour.