Public hearings announced for Silk-Miller murder investigation

Victoria's anti-corruption body IBAC will hold public hearings into alleged serious police misconduct over the investigation into the murders of two officers more than twenty years ago.

Sergeant Gary Silk, 35, and Senior Constable Rodney Miller, 34, were shot dead on August 16, 1998, after investigating a series of armed robberies in Melbourne.

Two men were jailed for their murders.

In November, IBAC began an inquiry into the police conduct during the investigations, after receiving new information and public hearings will be held in February.

“If these concerning practices are still used by Victoria Police they have the potential to impact the integrity of criminal investigations and the delivery of justice,” IBAC Commissioner, The Honourable Robert Redlich QC, said in an official statement this afternoon.

“The IBAC Operation Gloucester public hearings are necessary to examine a range of concerning practices allegedly used by Victoria Police officers, including during the investigation of the Silk-Miller murders, and to determine if these police practices are still continuing.

“These public hearings are not a ‘reopening’ of Victoria Police’s Operation Lorimer, which investigated the Silk-Miller murders. IBAC will not be reviewing the convictions that resulted from that investigation. There are other established processes to examine such matters.”