WA businessman’s reasons for covert recording aired in defamation trial
The undercover recording business owner at the center of a libel case admitted he decided to record a meeting with the Peel Development Commission because he was worried he was being set up.
Aaron Grainger and his wife met with Commission Deputy Chairman Greg Poland and commercial officer Lisa Taylor at the Subiaco Hotel in 2019 to discuss a land swap deal that would have allowed Grainger to take ownership of a valuable sand mining site in Myalup without going out to tender.
In return, Grainger would give the state government a place to dump contaminated soil from an airport project, a plot of land in Waroona.
This meeting was recorded without Poland or Taylor’s knowledge and later sent to journalists on this imprint; they also published two stories that formed the basis of Poland’s libel lawsuit.
On Monday, Grainger told the court he had spoken to his wife about her concerns and would record the conversation as a safety net.
“I thought if something went wrong, I would be the guy to fall,” Grainger said.
“There were so many people there, it was public, so I recorded it.”
Poland appeared aggressive during the meeting, Grainger said.
“He was pointing his finger at me a lot,” she said.
“If someone pointed a finger at your face, wouldn’t you call that offensive?”
Grainger also said Poland was “pretty loud” at the meeting and had behaved similarly at a previous meeting at the Peel Development Commission, “except for the finger pointing.”
He said it made him feel uncomfortable and “a little scary.”
“I was there for a meeting and just had to listen,” Grainger said.
Grainger said that he requested that the meeting be held in the Commission, like previous meetings, because it was closer to him, but Taylor said that this was not possible because Poland was busy.
In the weeks following the meeting, Grainger met with Liberal MP Andrew Hastie, former WA Liberal Leader Zak Kirkup and others about the acquisition of the sand mining site at Myalup and Aboriginal employment opportunities in the Peel region.
Grainger was looking for an agreement that could unite the two and was in talks with local Indigenous men Franklyn Nannup and George Walley. The second was at the meeting with Hastie.
At that meeting, Grainger announced that he had been offered the opportunity to acquire the Myalup land for himself, but that he would turn down the offer.
Grainger claims Hastie did not believe him, saying he recorded the conversation at the time.
Hastie asked for a copy; Grainger said he provided the copy on the condition that it remain confidential and not passed on to others.
After this meeting, he received a phone call from two former journalists on this imprint.
During that phone call, which was recorded and played in court on Monday, Grainger was asked if he could confirm off the record whether he attended the meeting and whether the recording accurately reflected Poland’s comments.
“You heard me, I have a voice too,” he replies.
“You heard the recording, they are trying to blackmail me.”
He claimed that the recording was presented to the Corruption and Crime Commission, but they were not interested in the investigation.
At the time of this discussion, Grainger had no idea he was being recorded.
Cross-examination turns into ‘poisonous’ soil plans
He was later cross-examined by Polish lawyer Martin Bennett about a conversation he had with an estate agent about the use of land at Waroona.
After a coffee meeting with Grainger, the representative submitted a proposal to the Peel Development Commission about the potential to use the land to take contaminated soil, depending on the concentration of PFAS.
He suggested that the Ministry of Water and Environmental Regulation could issue a license to clear land to accommodate the soil, and once the soil is buried, the area can be rehabilitated and revegetated.
Grainger then sought a meeting with Commission board members, including Poland, but stated that the discussion would be based on expanding resources for the Peel region, not on the representative’s proposal.
Bennett questioned why the manager’s offer was not discussed because it was “elaborate” and why Grainger did not inform the board whether he authorized or approved the offer.
Grainger said he didn’t feel the need, given that it was just a verbal conversation and the agent had approached him about the issue.
“I didn’t like the way he did things so I got rid of him,” she said.
Grainger also expressed confusion about the coffee meeting with Poland and how many people were there at the time of the recording.
While Grainger stated that there were many people around them during the meeting, including those sitting at the table next to them, Bennett argued that this was not the case.
Grainger also made several phone calls to his lawyers before the meeting and also called a journalist. AgeThe person he recognized from a previous story about the legality of recording the conversation.
Grainger said the journalist told him it was legal in a public place where others could hear.
The trial continues and the defense is expected to make its opening statement on Tuesday.
Holly Thompson is a journalist at WAtoday specializing in education and the environment.Connect with: X or email.
