Alex Lewenberg

Two charges of perjury against colourful Melbourne legal identity Alex Lewenberg were dismissed in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court in 1982.

In 1989 Mr Lewenberg was banned from practising as a solicitor for two years after he was found guilty of three unrelated charges of serious professional misconduct.

A Supreme Court judge described Mr Lewenberg then as "wilfully reckless of his professional responsibility'' and found he had acted disgracefully and dishonourably as a solicitor.

Lewenberg was not in the dock during the marathon 2000 drug trial of Boris Beljajev, but he was accused of being Mr Beljajev's accomplice.

The Crown claimed the city solicitor was the legal adviser to Mr Beljajev's alleged heroin trafficking business.

Mr Beljajev was found not guilty of commercial heroin trafficking on October 11, 2000.

Senior prosecutor Brind Woinarski, QC, told the jury at the opening of the trial in July 1999 that Mr Lewenberg's Queen St office was under audio and video surveillance by a joint police task force in 1988.

An earlier court hearing was told a police surveillance team followed and photographed Mr Lewenberg when he was in Queensland with Mr Beljajev during a police taskforce investigation.

"Like all big businesses, you need a solicitor,'' Mr Woinarski told the jury.

"This business had a solicitor. It had Mr Lewenberg.''

Prosecutor Richard Pirrie also claimed Mr Lewenberg tried to "derail'' committal proceedings against one of Mr Beljajev's alleged main dealers, Alex Ristic, by planning false defences after Ristic was arrested in 1988.

Mr Pirrie told the court Mr Lewenberg was heard on tapes secretly recorded in his city office "talking about burning Alex Ristic alive if he blabs to the police about Beljajev''.

"Lewenberg acts for Ristic on the heroin trafficking charges, yet his main objective clearly is to ensure Beljajev's interests are assured rather than Ristic's interests,'' Mr Pirrie said.

"Not only do we say that Lewenberg was involved in the heroin business, but he was willing to attempt to pervert the course of justice.''

Mr Beljajev's junior counsel Julian McMahon told the judge the Crown's analysis of the tapes from Mr Lewenberg's office was "highly subjective . . . and based on very dodgy transcripts on numerous occasions''.

Mr McMahon claimed to the jury during the trial that the Crown's allegations against Mr Lewenberg "pollute the administration of justice''.

He said Mr Lewenberg was a practising solicitor regarded as a fit and proper person under the Legal Professional Practice Act.

Mr McMahon told Judge Higgins, in the absence of the jury, that the nature of Mr Lewenberg's relationship with Beljajev had not been established.

"Let's ask him, or let's interview or let's charge him before we decide he is so untrustworthy, so certain to lie, so much in the camp of the accused that, despite the oath he is bound by, he will lie in this court,'' Mr McMahon said.

Evidence was given during the trial that Mr Beljajev paid $20,000 for Ristic's defence.

Mr Pirrie's comments were made during legal argument in the absence of the jury about whether Mr Lewenberg should have been called as a witness.

He said the Crown case was that the prosecution was not obliged to call the solicitor because he was an accomplice.

Judge Michael Higgins told counsel some of Mr Lewenberg's advice "clearly crosses the ethical line''.

The judge said there were several occasions where Mr Lewenberg had crossed the line by suggesting false defences, but that ``doesn't make him a co-conspirator in heroin trafficking''.

He said that as far as the defence knew Mr Lewenberg had never been quizzed about offences involving Mr Beljajev.

The court was told during a voir dire before the trial began that a brief of evidence against Mr Lewenberg was prepared by police involved in the Beljajev task force, but was not authorised for prosecution on legal advice.

Co-accused Larry Lambert's bar rister, Sean Grant, told the jury Mr Lewenberg would "sue the pants off'' Mr Woinarski if he repeated his ``cockeyed theory'' outside court.

He asked them why Mr Lewenberg had not been charged or struck off as a practising solicitor if he was the solicitor to a heroin business.

Lewenberg represented underworld killer Nicholas Ibrahim on February 4, 2003 when he faced court along with three detectives on drug charges.

Four policemen, including two detective sergeants, all based at St Kilda, were accused of trafficking $100,000 worth of cannabis.

Charged were Det-Sgt David John Waters, 42, who was discharged the previous month, and serving officers Det-Sgt Glenn Saunders, 33, Sen-Det Peter John Alexander, 36, and Sen-Det Stephen Russell Campbell, 34.

They were suspended from active duty.

Ibrahim, 33, was also charged over the alleged drug deal.

Det Sen-Sgt George Tapai, from the ethical standards division, alleged in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court the trafficking occurred on May 10, 1999.

Det Sen-Sgt Tapai said Det-Sgt Saunders had "an association" with Mr Ibrahim, who had arranged to buy 13.6kg of cannabis from another person.

Mr Ibrahim had agreed to buy the drugs for $100,000, the court heard.

He allegedly arranged to meet the unnamed person at the St Kilda Marina for the deal.

Det Sen-Sgt Tapai said Mr Ibrahim then told Det-Sgt Saunders about the plan.

Det-Sgt Saunders and the three other officers allegedly intercepted the car carrying the drugs and seized cannabis in rubbish bags.

It is alleged the detectives then gave the drugs to Mr Ibrahim.

No arrests were made and the officers charged no one, the court heard.

Det Sen-Sgt Tapai said evidence against the officers included witnesses and telephone intercepts.

Tony Hargreaves, for the four policemen, said his clients were all long-serving members, one with more than 20 years service.

They had known of the allegations for a long time and when interviewed had denied any wrongdoing, Mr Hargreaves said.

The court heard one witness was a confessed drug trafficker who could be indemnified from prosecution.

Alex Lewenberg, for Mr Ibrahim, said his client was a self-employed builder.

Det Sen-Sgt Tapai said he did not oppose bail for the five men.

Magistrate Barbara Cotterell granted the officers bail, saying they were not a risk of fleeing.

Ms Cotterell also granted Mr Ibrahim bail.

Det-Sgt Waters was discharged after stress or sick leave.

Det-Sgt Saunders was suspended in April 1999 and the other officers were suspended.

The court suppressed the five men's addresses.

Each faces charges of theft, drug possession, trafficking a drug, conspiring to traffick and conspiring to steal.

Mr Ibrahim faced an extra charge of trafficking cannabis.

All five were due to return to court on March 25, 2003. (more)

Police spokesman Kevin Loomes said the charges were not related to a probe into corruption in the drug squad, Operation Ceja.

That investigation had already delayed several major drug cases.