AWB's former chairman Trevor Flugge, forever tainted as the gun-toting, bare chested face of the Iraq kickbacks scandal, stepped down as a director of Churchlands-based IBT Education Ltd today.
AWB's former chairman Trevor Flugge, forever tainted as the gun-toting, bare chested face of the Iraq kickbacks scandal, stepped down as a director of Churchlands-based IBT Education Ltd today.
This is Mr Flugge's latest board resignation, having resigned director roles at Wesfarmers Ltd, Automotive Holdings Group Ltd and Bibra Lake-based energy storage facilities manufacturer ZBB Energy Corporation in July this year.
Mr Flugge, a farmer who chaired AWB from 1995 until he lost an election for the position in 2002, was accused yesterday of lying to the Cole inquiry during its year-long investigation of the monopoly wheat exporter's activities.
He was chairman when AWB began making illicit payments to Iraq in 1999 under the UN's corruption-riddled oil-for-food program, eventually funnelling $290 million to the regime of Saddam Hussein.
In two sessions of evidence at the inquiry, Mr Flugge repeatedly denied knowledge of the payments which were made through a Jordanian trucking company half-owned by Saddam's government.
But in his final report, Commissioner Terence Cole has effectively called the businessman a liar, recommending he be investigated further for a string of possible breaches of the federal Crimes Act, the Criminal Code and the Corporations Act.
"In my view, Mr Flugge might have aided, abetted, counselled or procured the offences that AWB might have committed against sections (of the Crimes Act and Criminal Code relating to fraud and false representation)," Mr Cole said in the report.
Mr Flugge, whose infamous photograph showing him brandishing a revolver, shirt off, in a Baghdad hotel room has been a popular rerun in newspapers this year - was not available for comment.
In relation to breaches of the Corporations Act, Mr Cole found Mr Flugge's actions might have been "reckless or intentionally dishonest" on a number of fronts.
"Mr Flugge might have dishonestly used his position and been reckless as to whether the use of his position may have resulted in Iraq or an Iraqi entity directly or indirectly gaining an advantage and therefore might have committed an offence," the report said.
The former chairman is also accused of failing to exercise his duties as director in the best interests of the company.
Mr Cole questioned much of Mr Flugge's evidence to the inquiry, rejecting his denials of having sanctioned the payment mechanism for the kickbacks.
The evidence of former marketing manager Mark Emons' alone was enough to show Mr Flugge's knowledge of the scheme, Mr Cole said.
"(It) is strong evidence that Mr Flugge had full knowledge of the true arrangements between AWB and the IGB (Iraq Grain Board), and understood and approved of AWB continuing such arrangements in order to preserve AWB's trade in Iraq," the report said.
Mr Flugge also told the inquiry he had hearing problems, but Mr Cole found the evidence "gives rise to the question of whether Mr Flugge's evidence of non-hearing or non-recall is accepted".
The businessman was also paid $1 million by the Howard government to be a top agriculture adviser in Iraq after the 2003 invasion by US-led forces toppled Saddam's government.
