Christian Porter’s wife Karen Espiner is said to represent suspected war criminals
Christian Porter’s high-flying criminal lawyer is set to represent an SAS soldier accused of gunning down an unarmed Afghan villager
- Karen Espiner defends Oliver Schulz in the war crimes trial
- SAS veteran accused of killing Afghan villager
- Espiner recently married former AG Christian Porter
High-flying criminal lawyer Karen Espiner is tasked with defending an accused war criminal who allegedly shot dead an unarmed Afghan villager.
The glamorous right-wing Eagle, who married former Attorney General Christian Porter in Byron Bay in February, appeared Monday via video link for Oliver Schulz at Queanbeyan Magistrates’ Court.
The decorated SAS veteran, 41, faces a possible life sentence for allegedly gunning down father Mohammad in May 2012 in a wheat field in southern Afghanistan’s Uruzgan province.
Mr Schulz has not requested bail and remains in police custody after being arrested at an address in Goulburn in the NSW southern highlands on Monday morning.
Footage of the alleged shooting was broadcast on ABC’s Four Corners program in 2020.
Christian Porter (left) is seen with Karen Espiner in February 2022 when the couple were first photographed together
Oliver Schulz (pictured) – who was awarded the Commendation for Bravery for his service in Afghanistan – is now expected to become the first member of the Australian Defense Force to be charged with a war crime under Australian law
Schulz – who was awarded the Commendation for Galantry for his service in Afghanistan – is now the first member of the Australian Defense Force to be charged with a war crime under Australian law.
The Office of the Special Counsel – believed to consist of homicide detectives and an intelligence officer – was set up in 2021 to investigate alleged war crimes.
A request followed from Inspector General of Inquiry into the Australian Defense Forces, headed by Paul Brereton, an Army Reserve Major General and NSW Supreme Court Justice.
“A joint investigation between the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) and AFP has today led to the arrest of a New South Wales man,” AFP confirmed in a statement.
“He is expected to be charged with one war crime – murder under Subsection 268.70(1) Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).
“Investigators arrested the 41-year-old man in regional NSW this morning and he is expected to appear before a NSW Magistrates Court later today [Monday].
“It is alleged that he murdered an Afghan while stationed in Afghanistan with the Australian Defense Force.
“The maximum penalty for a war crime – murder is life imprisonment.”
It is Mr Porter’s third marriage and the nuptials come just months after the couple confirmed their engagement in October 2022
The statement added: “The OSI and AFP are working together to investigate alleged violations of the laws of armed conflict by Australian Defense Force personnel in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016.
“As the matter is being heard in court and the investigation is ongoing, no further comment will be made.”
British-born Ms Espiner is considered an elite lawyer having been named Criminal Law Partner of the Year at the Lawyers Weekly Awards 2020.
Much of her practice is dedicated to representing clients charged with “very serious criminal matters including murder, sex offenses, drug offenses, aggravated assault and corporate offences,” according to the Younes + Espiner Lawyers website.
“She also appears in complicated local court cases for clients whose personal and professional reputations are at risk,” it says.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11893733/Christian-Porters-wife-Karen-Espiner-represent-alleged-war-criminal.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490 Christian Porter’s wife Karen Espiner is said to represent suspected war criminals