Investigators 'misled' alleged victim of police assaults, court told

Investigators 'misled' man who was tasered in Mareeba watch house, court told In short: Two Queensland police officers have applied for a criminal prosecution against them for allegedly tasering and restraining a watch house prisoner unlawfully to be permanently halted. Lawyers for the senior constables have argued the investigation into their alleged conduct was "contaminated" by investigators from Ethical Standards Command. What's next? Judge Dean Morzone KC is due to hand down a decision next week on whether the case proceeds to trial. Two police officers charged with assaulting and unlawfully restraining a prisoner in a regional Queensland watch house have asked a court to put an end to criminal proceedings against them. The District Court in Cairns has heard Charlton Bong, 25, was tasered, cuffed and left alone in a padded cell for about two and a half hours at the Mareeba watch house in Far North Queensland on January 20, 2024. Senior Constables Andrew David Couchman, 54, and Ulrich Weiss, 45, were investigated by the police Ethical Standards Command over the incident and charged with criminal offences, including assault and deprivation of liberty. A trial has been listed for next month, however, defence barrister David Jones KC, for Senior Constable Couchman, today argued for a permanent stay of the case. He acknowledged it would be an "extraordinary measure", but said there was otherwise a risk of the "trial starting under the shadow of police misconduct". Investigator 'misled' alleged victim The officers' application for a permanent stay of the charges followed a January 2026 committal hearing in which investigating officer Detective Senior Sergeant Kim Cavill conceded she added a line into Mr Bong's sworn statement saying he did not consent to the force used against him. The court has previously heard Mr Bong could not read or write and had been experiencing mental health issues at the watch house. Mr Jones told the court on Tuesday that Detective Senior Sergeant Cavill "misled" Mr Bong. "Even after reading the final paragraph to Mr Bong, Detective Senior Sergeant Cavill said, 'That's from my recordings of what you have told me previously,'" Mr Jones told the court. "That is a lie. That is deception, and that is deception from an officer of the Ethical Standards Command." The court heard there would be two issues at trial: consent and justification. Mr Bong gave evidence at an earlier pre-trial hearing, telling the court he deserved to be tasered because he was hearing voices and acting violently. "Whilst the word consent wasn't used, it is more closely aligned with an answer that would assist the applicants in this case rather than the Crown," Mr Jones said. Mr Jones said it had been left to the defence to "try and unravel what is unreliable" ahead of next month's trial, including "what [Mr Bong] might have been led to believe over time". Senior Constable Weiss's lawyer Calvin Gnech said the "contamination" of the case began well before the extra line in Mr Bong's statement was typed. Mr Gnech said Mr Bong's "understanding of the incident has been shaped by the investigating conduct", including multiple formal interviews and a pre-trial hearing. "Mr Bong's capacity to reset, give independent evidence at trial — genuinely independent of any of the contaminating influences — is at best speculative, and at worst, impossible," Mr Gnech told the court. "That is a prejudice that any accused should not be faced with or have to even overcome when entitled to a fair trial." Mr Jones said the Ethical Standards Command investigation was neither impartial nor objective, and amounted to "improper conduct". "If any unit of the Queensland Police Service should know better, it is that unit," he told the court. Ruling due next week Crown prosecutor Christian Peters told the court it was a "false characterisation" to suggest the investigation was prejudiced. Mr Peters said Mr Bong was a "vulnerable Indigenous man in custody at the watch house" and that the sequence of events was entirely captured on video. "[Mr Bong] is a person who will come along and be able to give evidence about his recollection of the incidents themselves," he said. Mr Peters said the "state of all of the evidence in this matter" did not give rise to a level of unfairness that would warrant a permanent stay of the charges. "Whether or not [Mr Bong] consented, whether or not it was justified, whether or not the investigating officer impugned that particular concept, are all things the applicants, in my submission, are not prevented from pursuing at their trial," Mr Peters argued. The court heard the Crown would rely on expert witnesses in its case against Senior Constables Couchman and Weiss, and that a jury could still conclude Mr Bong did not consent to the force used against him. "There are other witnesses that point to the fact it was not necessary or justified," he said. Senior Constable Couchman was present for today's hearing while Senior Constable Weiss's appearance was excused. Judge Dean Morzone KC has reserved his decision and is due to rule on the application next week.