Police are investigating whether the New South Wales police minister, David Elliott, broke the law after he posted photographs online of him firing two prohibited weapons.
The photos were posted on Elliott’s official Facebook page in September 2018 to mark the opening of a rifle range at the John Morony correctional centre in Sydney’s north-west.
In the images, Elliott, the corrections minister at the time, is shown holding a Heckler & Koch submachine gun and a semi-automatic pistol.
The unauthorised possession or use of a prohibited firearm carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.
Under NSW law, an unlicensed person can legally handle a firearm at a shooting range if they have filled out a declaration answering several safety and historical questions, including whether they have previously been prohibited from holding a firearms licence, been the subject of a firearms prohibition order, or committed a serious offence in the past 10 years.
But that declaration does not permit an unlicensed person to handle prohibited weapons, including those Elliott was photographed holding.
In a statement, Elliott said he had fired the weapons “under the strict supervision of the range master”.
“I acted in good faith under the assumption that Corrective Services NSW had complied with all of its administrative requirements according to the Firearms Act.”
Elliott said he was told that he “and potentially hundreds of individuals” who had used the range were potentially in breach of the act: “I understand potential breaches could date back up to 20 years.
“Given the safety and security of firearms is of the utmost importance to me, I immediately asked the Police Commissioner to investigate the operation of the CSNSW firing range to ensure they comply with the relevant legislation governing the use of firearms within their training establishments.
In a statement, a Corrective Services spokesperson said it was “taking steps to correct a possible administrative error”.
“The matter has been referred to the Firearms Registry for advice.”
NSW police confirmed that the police minister, Michael Fuller, “was contacted today by Minister for Police David Elliott in relation to concerns over the conduct of the shooting range at Corrective Services NSW”.
A spokeswoman confirmed police were investigating to determine whether the Firearms Act had been breached.
“The matter will now be referred to an appropriate command in order that further inquiries can be conducted with Corrective Services NSW to establish if breaches of the act have occurred previously,” she said.
Elliott, now the police and emergency services minister, will face further questioning Tuesday before a budget estimates hearing.
“Should be an ‘engaging’ budget estimates session today as we explore why on earth police minister David Elliott has been sharing photos of himself with a submachine gun in jail,” the Greens MP David Shoebridge said. “That’s a prohibited weapon by the way and misuse carries a maximum of 14 years in jail.”
Shoebridge said the pictures demonstrated a lack of judgment from a minister in charge of law and order.
One of the more scandal-prone ministers in the NSW cabinet, Elliott was already expected to face a grilling at estimates over his decision to leave Australia on a European holiday when dozens of bushfires were burning out of control across NSW, claiming lives and property across the state.
He refused to cancel his holiday, just days after prime minister Scott Morrison’s Hawaiian holiday at a time of national crisis caused widespread furore. Both Morrison and Elliott ultimately cut short their holidays.
Elliott was also the subject of a NSW police review after a 17-year-old P-plate driver alleged that the minister had grabbed his arm and chased him through the streets after a minor car accident.
When the teenager asked to see his police badge, Elliott allegedly said: “I pay for the badges, I don’t get one.” Elliott denied the allegations and the review found “no further police action” could be taken.
And Elliott was also under fire last year for defending police who illegally strip-searched children at music festivals. He said: “I’ve got young children and if I thought the police felt they were at risk of doing something wrong I’d want them strip-searched.”
