Ben Roberts-Smith makes first statement after release from prison on bail

Former SAS soldier and accused war criminal Ben Roberts-Smith has denied all allegations against him in his first public statement released today.

The 47-year-old Victoria Cross recipient was arrested on April 7 and charged with killing or ordering the killing of five unarmed prisoners during their deployment to Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012.

Reading from a brief statement on the Gold Coast, he dismissed the allegations.

“For the past decade, my family and I have been the subject of a campaign to convince Australians that I acted inappropriately while serving in Afghanistan.

“As I have always maintained, I categorically deny all these allegations.

“And while I would have preferred if these charges had not been filed, I will take this opportunity to finally clear my name.”

“I am proud of my service in Afghanistan.”

He concluded by saying that he would “never run from a fight in my life.”

Roberts-Smith successfully applied for bail at Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court last Friday. He was released from Silverwater Correctional Center before returning to Queensland.

He has consistently proclaimed his innocence.

War crimes allegations against Roberts-Smith were first exposed by Fairfax Media, now owned by Nine, in 2018.

The war veteran sued for defamation in the Federal Court, but suffered a crushing defeat before a judge who ruled that, on the balance of probabilities, the murder allegations were true.

He failed to overturn these findings on appeal to the full Federal Court and the Supreme Court.

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