Tumbarumba man Grahame Jon White found not guilty of bomb manufacture in Wagga District Court

Grahame Jon White, 39, faced trial in Wagga District Court this week after police raided his Tumbarumba home in July, 2016 and found a piece of safety fuse consistent with that used in the bombs in question. 

However, on Friday, Judge Gordon Lerve found that raid was unlawfully executed because Mr White was not given notice of the warrant, therefore rendering all evidence police gathered during their search inadmissible. 

“Quite frankly, the police did not turn their minds to the provision of the service of the occupier’s notice – it is a grave contravention,” Judge Lerve said. 

During the course of the trial, Crown prosecutor Michael McColm presented more evidence allegedly linking Mr White to the four improvised explosive devices, including a cigarette butt found inside one of the bomb’s with his DNA on it. 

“I’m not going to suggest for a minute that anyone would be smoking, unless they’re entirely stupid, while assembling an explosive device,” Mr McColm said. 

“How it got there, we can’t exactly say, but it has the accused’s DNA on it, it’s consistent with him assembling it and accidentally having caught an old cigarette butt and put it in the canister without his knowledge.”

However, defence barrister Louie Christoff said the cigarette butt was one of multiple pieces of rubbish found inside the bomb and did not mean his client was guilty. 

“There are so many conceivable ways that that cigarette butt could have found its way into that canister,” Mr Christoff said.

Judge Lerve ultimately agreed with Mr Christoff, noting that even if Mr White was there when the bombs were being manufactured, that did not necessarily render him guilty of making them. 

The Crown also read a series of text messages to the court that were suggestive of Mr White trying to sell the four bombs.

Mr White received a text saying “if you can get four of those big f---ers, I'll definitely take them”, to which he replied “I will get them for you when I head up there on Sunday arvo.I don’t know what they cost, but those f---kers aren’t cheap”. 

However, Mr Christoff told the court there was no specific mention of bombs or explosives in those text messages.

“There are so many conceivable things that those text messages could refer to,” he said.

“They certainly add to the conclusion that Mr White knew about something, perhaps was able to procure something, but not that he himself made something.” 

These factors combined led Judge Lerve to find Mr White not guilty of manufacturing the four bombs in question.

“I have come to the conclusion that, whilst I am gravely suspicious, the combination of circumstances are not such that lead to the only conclusion that this accused was involved in the manufacture,” Judge Lerve said.

“He may well have been somehow involved, but, for the various factors I have set out, I am not persuaded beyond reasonable doubt that the only explanation is that he was the manufacturer.” 

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