Ben Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient and former SAS soldier, is set to apply for bail after spending over a week behind bars following his arrest on April 7. The 47-year-old is facing serious charges including the murder of five unarmed Afghan civilians during his service in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2012.
Roberts-Smith is scheduled to appear via audio-visual link in Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court to seek his release. The allegations suggest he directly murdered two Afghan civilians and was complicit in the murders of three others. Specific incidents include ordering the killing of Mohammed Essa in Kakarak, Uruzgan Province, in April 2009, as well as the alleged murders of another civilian, Ahmadullah, and a man named Ali Jan during a raid in Darwan in September 2012.
Additional charges relate to separate incidents in Syahchow, Uruzgan Province, where Roberts-Smith is accused of jointly murdering an unidentified Afghan prisoner alongside another soldier. Despite the serious nature of these accusations, both deceased individuals had been listed as enemies killed in action.
The allegations against Roberts-Smith first emerged in 2018 through a report by Fairfax Media, which led him to sue the outlet for defamation. However, he faced a significant setback when the court ruled that the claims of murder were, on the balance of probabilities, true. Attempts to appeal this decision in the Federal Court and the High Court were unsuccessful.
The shift from a civil defamation claim to criminal charges necessitates that prosecutors now prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt to secure a conviction. Roberts-Smith’s situation highlights a troubling trend, as he is the second former SAS member to face war crime charges, following Oliver Schultz, who was charged in 2023 for the murder of a young man in Uruzgan Province.
Both men maintain their innocence amidst the serious allegations that have surfaced against them. As the situation unfolds, Roberts-Smith’s appeal for bail will be a critical moment in this high-profile case.