James Geoffrey Griffin's mobile phone allegedly contained a range of photographs of children in Launceston General Hospital's ward 4K, Tasmania Police has confirmed.
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Police needed to alter copies of the photographs to only include the children's faces before they were appropriate enough to be shown to a panel of LGH staff in December 2019 to help identify victims.
Detective Senior Constable Glenn Hindle gave evidence to the Commission of Inquiry regarding his investigation into Griffin which started on July 19, 2019, when he opened a file that had been forwarded from police in Hobart two months earlier.
Tiffany Skeggs had made a disclosure that Griffin had allegedly sexually abused her as a child, prompting the investigation.
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The investigation resulted in a search warrant where Griffin's mobile phone was seized. Child exploitation material was allegedly found on the phone, and a further forensic analysis was carried out.
The moment police saw the photographs, a phone call was made to have his Working with Vulnerable People registration suspended.
On the same day - July 31, 2019 - an email from HR consultant Mathew Harvey to his colleagues, obtained by the commission, referenced the photographs.
"From the THS point of view, there were a number of photos taken under a folder titled 'Ward 4K' of patients, with dates between 2015 and 2019," the email reads.
Detective Senior Constable Hindle said his investigation found the photos were "upwards of eight years in age", and measures were taken to identify victims.
"So I contacted (LGH director of clinical services) Dr Renshaw's office and asked that he form a panel, of such, of staff that had been available or present on the ward for that period of eight years," he said.
"And collectively, we met with a view to identifying the children that might be in the photos.
"I sanitised the photos down to a point where they could be put in front of a member of the public, namely just leaving facial images and such.
"There was some victims that were immediately identified through the panel, and there was others that they, I think they went away and did some research on."
Police investigation 'undermined' by locker access
Detective Senior Constable Hindle outlined how he took "immediate steps" to prevent Griffin being a risk to children from the start of the investigation. He said this was successful.
He told Dr Renshaw of the investigation on July 31, 2019, and a meeting was held in the police station with Mr Harvey.
"[Dr Renshaw] gave me an undertaking that he would go back to his office and interrogate his systems as to what information he immediately had at hand in terms of James Griffin," Detective Senior Constable Hindle said.
"One of the things he included to me, I think it came from [HR consultant] James Bellinger, was the ... comment that Kylee Pearn had previously disclosed to the hospital."
Ms Pearn's 2011 disclosure of alleged child abuse by Griffin did not show up on the LGH's HR system. Senior hospital management were still unaware of it until last week, when it was disclosed in a hearing.
Griffin's Working with Vulnerable People registration was suspended on the day of the July 31 meeting, and he was met by hospital management and security when he arrived for work at 1pm.
Detective Senior Constable Hindle intended to go down to the hospital after Griffin was removed, but he was disappointed by what occurred next.
Griffin was allowed to go to his locker.
"I later heard that afternoon that he had actually been granted access by a colleague to the hospital, into his locker, and removed items from his locker," Detective Senior Constable Hindle said.
"Our intentions were undermined.
"I intended to do that in the company of AHPRA just in case there was something in there that they may have thought was appropriate or of concern
"It left me concerned as to what may be there."
He was then required to carry out a second search warrant of Griffin's residence.
Police opposed bail the second time
Griffin was arrested and charged on September 2, 2019. He was granted bail with a condition that he not communicate with children under 17 unless they were in the company of another adult.
Detective Senior Constable Hindle said police became concerned when Griffin intended to travel to Hobart for a netball event, seeing it as his way of getting around this condition.
Police opposed bail when he appeared in court again on October 3.
"Following his first period of bail, we thought we'd put stringent enough measures in place that he couldn't contact any child, or be in the company of any child, under the age of 17 without another adult being present," Detective Senior Constable Hindle said.
"It turns out that he was an entitled individual who sought loopholes in respect of that bail condition.
"Therefore, we identified that risk was still an ever present concern.
"Upon his second arrest, I opposed bail on the strength of evidence that we had available to us."
Bail was granted, however.
Griffin took his own life 15 days later, on October 18, 2019.
Sexual assault support services:
- Sexual Assault Support Service (Tasmania): 1800 697 877
- Lifeline (24-hour crisis line): 131 114
- Tasmania's Victims of Crime Service: 1300 300 238
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