Gillard's x partner Bruce Wilson linked to murder - .357 Magnum round left on car "keep your mouth shut or you'll get one of these"
Thursday, 14 September 2017
Bruce Morton WILSON, Julia Gillard's lover and partner for at least 4 years - in action outside the Trade Union Royal Commission.
Former union boss linked to murder
Julia Gillard’s ex-boyfriend, former union boss Bruce Wilson, has been sensationally linked to the 1975 gangland-style murder of Perth brothel madam Shirley Finn.
A witness, Philip Hooper, today described to the West Australian Coroner’s Court how he and his girlfriend were parked near the murder scene in South Perth on the night and had heard four gunshots.
He said two men — who he identified as police officer Bernie Johnson and Perth identity Laurie Tudori — later came up to his car and told him not to go to the police.
He broke down in tears as he described the threats and intimidation he had since endured, including how Mr Johnson had threatened to frame him for the murder of Ms Finn. Mr Hooper, 68, who is gravely ill, said his testimony was his final chance to tell the truth of what had happened.
“I have been scared for 42 years,” he said. “I have been shot at and it’s not nice.”
Mr Hooper said Mr Wilson — who he knew as an Australian Workers Union leader in WA — had left a .357 magnum bullet on his car at his workplace with a note that said: “Keep your mouth shut or you’ll get one of these.”
He said he knew of Mr Wilson as a “violent person who liked to get his own way”.
Mr Wilson had once attempted to throw a roofing contractor off the roof off a building site because he refused to pay $10,000 to the union.
Mr Hooper said Mr Wilson’s threat had prompted him to make a statement to police in 1994. “I thought, ‘this has got to bloody stop’,” he said.
The allegations made by Mr Hooper predate Mr Wilson’s relationship with Ms Gillard by about 15 years.
Mr Wilson has been connected to the establishment of an AWU slush fund at the time he was in a relationship with Ms Gillard.
The AWU affair dogged Ms Gillard during her time as prime minister. Ms Gillard, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, provided legal advice to help Mr Wilson establish the fund.
Mr Wilson has never previously been linked to the murder of Ms Finn. The case has intrigued Perth for the past 42 years.
The inquest is continuing.