This is the story of two men.   One of them is Christopher Gordon Williams - a fraudster, disbarred lawyer, thief, a gaoled child sexual offender and until recently an officer/instructor of army cadets, i.e. children.  The other is David Morrison, who led the Army while it ignored or failed to notice every possible warning about Williams and his crimes.

Here is a little of this atrocious record, commencing with Williams's time as an officer of the Australian Air Force Cadets prior to 2003.

11 November 1999 - Williams was convicted of 5 counts of serious fraud, Tasmania, sentenced to 3 months gaol (suspended)

February, 2003 - Williams surfaces in Sydney, commences work as Regional Staff Officer, St John Ambulance, New South Wales and is an officer/instructor with Australian Air Force Cadets.

May, 2003 - commences as Asst training officer at Volunteer Coast Guard, NSW.

10 June 2003 - Supreme Court, Tasmania makes orders to disbar Williams, removing his name from roll of legal practitioners, Tasmania, finding him not a fit and proper person.

9 October, 2003 - Director of the Australian Air Force Cadets writes to Williams formally terminating him as an instructor or officer of AAFC on the grounds he was "not a fit and proper person".   Williams had not disclosed fraud conviction to Air Force or defence.

.......Williams pursued lengthy internal appeals process against decision to terminate him.............

27 September, 2005 the delegate of the Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force affirmed the decision terminating Williams as an instructor/officer of Air Force Cadets.   Further allegations of mobile phone abuse and personal expenditure fraud against Williams were not dealt with as the decision to terminate him on the Tasmanian convictions made those proceedings apparently unnecessary. 

24 October, 2005 - Williams applied to the Federal Magistrates' Court for a review of the Chief of Air Force's decision to terminate him as an officer or instructor of Air Force Cadets.

11 May, 2006 - Federal Magistrate Murray McInnis handed down damning judgement against Williams, affirming the Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force's decision to terminate Williams on the grounds that he was not a fit and proper person to be an instructor or officer of cadets.

2008 - Williams appointed Grand Librarian of the United Supreme Grand Chapter of Mark And Royal Arch Masons, NSW and ACT.

June, 2011 - David Morrison appointed Chief of Army.

~April, 2012 - Christopher Gordon Williams appointed as an Officer of Cadets, Australian Army Cadets - posted to Rockdale Australian Army Cadets unit as 2LT/QM.   Used his real name, no attempt to obscure or change his identity.

2012-2013 - separate internal complaints made by female Army cadets, four 16-year-old-girls, who alleged Williams touched them inappropriately, or rubbed himself against them. Other officers raise concerns about his behaviour, including inappropriate use of mobile phone during parades, missing stores, theft and serious concerns about inappropriate dealings with girls.   An internal report covering the period raises:

a string of serious concerns including a “failure of AAC to handle complaints /allegations of inappropriate behaviour”; “inappropriate behaviour by AAC adult cadet staff” and “intimidation of staff and cadets by AAC command”.

“The length of this series of incidents is of serious concern,” a senior female cadet officer at the barracks said the inappropriate behaviour had been occurring since 2012.

“Parents and cadets have written letters of complaint against (the alleged perpetrator)relating to his behaviour,” the report notes the officer as saying.

“Further complaints have been made concerning the creation of a hostile environment by (him) through his continual leering at female cadets and photographing of female cadets.”

The report says the alleged perpetrator is “still at the unit and has a supervisory role over the children at the unit”, including “those who have made complaints concerning his inappropriate behaviour”.

The report says complaints were passed to the unit’s superior commander and then to NSW AAC head office. It claims “the only action taken” against the alleged perpetrator was “reading through the Working With Children procedures” with him.

13 June, 2013 - David Morrisson makes his youtube speech about respect for women.   Includes the famous line (which he now admits was stolen from General David Hurley), "The standard you walk past is the standard you accept".

June 2013 a 13 year old girl added Williams to her Facebook account as a " friend".   He was then a 60 year old team leader for Scouts Australia and was also a regional staff officer at St John Ambulance which the young person had an interest in.   Williams accepted the 13 year old girl's friend request.

August, 2013 - NSW Police receive tipoff about Williams prolific text messages to 13 year old Girl Scout.

2 September 2013 - NSW Police raid Williams house, find evidence of apparently serious offending. When asked by police if he had sent the text message suggesting the girl masturbate herself, Williams said, "Did I actually put that, no, I shouldn't have put that, I must have been tired.   Yeah, that is something I've written and I shouldn't have written.   Oh well, I answered a question (from the girl) probably without applying appropriate censorship I suppose.   It might have been something I thought but I didn't think I'd written it.   Obviously I didn't think about it and I shouldn't have sent it.   It was an unguarded moment".  The girl told police that Williams met with her twice at Westfield Shopping Centre Burwood since establishing the Facebook relationship.

6 September 2013 - Williams charged by NSW Police with using a carriage service to procure a child under 16 years for sexual activity - bailed to appear in court on 1 October 2013.  He continues to work with children at the Army Cadets.

Monday, 7 April 2014 - I received detailed tip off included detailed written reports confirming William's ongoing behaviour inside Army Cadet unit at Rockdale, NSW.   I attempted to make an urgent verbal report of the allegations to the ADF MediaOps centre on that Monday afternoon.    Call centre operator Eva (no surname was furnished) refused to accept a verbal report, I remonstrated somewhat and explained the urgency given a parade of cadets scheduled for the following morning but I was told no verbal report would be accepted.

Monday, 7 April, 2014 I phoned Minister David Johnston's office and spoke with Mark Dodd his media advisor.   DODD told me he would not take a verbal report, he told me to put something in writing and said, "I've got a Malaysian Airliner to find' before hanging up.

9 April, 2014 - I wrote to a senior NSW Supreme Court Judge associated with Australian Army Cadets outlining my concerns along with evidence supporting those concerns.   I did not receive a reply.

9 April 2014 - the first of my stories (with a byline shared by a staff writer) appeared in The Australian newspaper setting out Williams behaviour at the Rockdale Army Cadet Unit.  Later that day Williams was "stood aside" from the Rockdale cadet unit pending further investigations of the 2013 reported "unacceptable behaviour".

14 April, 2014 - NSW Police attend at the Rockdale Cadet Unit to interview 3 x 16 year old girls who had reported allegations of Williams inappropriate dealings with them dating back 2 years to his commencement with the unit in 2012.

15 April, 2014 - Williams appeared before Magistrate Mark Buncombe and entered a Guilty Plea to this charge "Christopher Gordon Williams, being 60 years of age, used a carriage service to transmit a communication to [BLANKED OUT] being someone who was under the age of 16 years, which was indecent, contrary to Section 474.27 A (1) of the Criminal Code".

17 April 2014 - I again wrote to Defence media asking among other things

17 April, 2014 I received this response:

UNCLASSIFIED

Good afternoon Michael,

Thank you for your enquiry.

Following your previous enquiry regarding this matter on 8 April 2014, Defence can advise that;

• the Chief of Army, Lieutenant General David Morrison, AO, has directed an inquiry into the allegations, including Australian Army Cadets (AAC) policies, procedures and management of complaints,
• the individual concerned has been suspended from all duties and activities as an Officer of Cadets in the AAC,
• Defence is assisting the NSW Police Force with their investigation,
• members of the cadet unit have been offered referrals to support services.

At this time, Defence is therefore unable to release any further details regarding the individuals concerned, including their personal information, service history or the allegations, due to the investigation and the provisions of the Privacy Act.

Regards,

13 June, 2014 - Deputy Chief Magistrate Jane Culver sentenced Williams to 15 months gaol, with a minimum of 10 months.  

“Casting himself as a father-figure could only, on any view of the matter, increase the indecency of the comment … such a comment is so alien to any parental relationship between a father and 13-year-old girl,” Ms Culver said. 

“The innocence and confusion of the victim leaps out of these pages at every turn,’’ Ms Culver said. “It’s clear that the offender had a sexualised context in these communications, a sexualised expectation or a sexualised reference.”

Last Friday, 29 January 2016 I sent a chaser to Defence asking for a copy of the inquiry Morrison ordered into Williams and the allegations I first raised with defence in April 2014.

5 days ago I received this reply

UNCLASSIFIED

Hi Michael

Thanks for your email.  We will endeavour to respond as soon as possible but it won't be today.  A response early next week is most likely.

Also, could you please ensure all future correspondence goes to

Thanks,

XXXXX

Public Affairs Officer | Defence Media

Department of Defence | Russell Offices | PO Box 7909 Canberra BC ACT 2610

Follow us on Twitter: @DeptDefence

I'm currently still waiting on their reply.

^{Christopher Gordon WILLIAMS (DOB 20 March 1953) is recorded on CNI 784197947 - he is a sexual offender}

And this man ran the organisation that ignored warning after warning and left him unsupervised with children. 

^{David Morrison, Australian of the Year}

^{PS, This meeting of July 2014 caught my eye.}

^{It noted:}

^{And resolved:}

^{I don't know what role if any the Lodge played in this saga.   But I note this very detailed social media post from someone who apparently does.}

The person who taught me the handshake said "Do this and you'll be looked after"

The best example I can provide right now of the power of the "secret handshake" would be the case of Christopher Gordon Williams.

Williams was a disbarred as a lawyer and sentenced to three months jail for fraud.

Williams had previously been arrested and charged with offences involving a 13 year old girl in Scouts Australia.

Williams had previously been an Air Force Cadet officer, working with children. The Chief of the RAAF had declared him of unsatisfactory character and discharged him from the Air Force Cadets.

DESPITE all of the above he then managed to get into the Australian Army Cadets as an officer.

He was then the subject of 4 separate complaints by young girls against him in the army cadets.

He then started texting another female cadet.

In 2013 he was charged with using social media to groom a 13-year-old girl for sex. He was also charged with using a carriage service to procure a person under 16 for sex and using a carriage service to send indecent materials to someone under 16

Williams is now in jail. How did he get into the Army Cadets when he was clearly so unsuited and a danger to children?

Answer: He was a Freemason, and was the Grand Librarian at the Sydney Masonic Centre.

In my time in the army I repeatedly raised warnings about the behaviour of the Officers of Cadets. Every time I was ordered to shut up.

The power of a handshake.

I will keep you posted, but MORRISON should be ashamed of himself.