SAPOL Cop & Ex-Police Union Daryl Wayne Mundy Fined for Hit-and-Run

A career cop involved in a collision in Adelaide’s CBD has been fined $2,000 in his absence, with his lawyer claiming court that his client was “unaware” of the crash at the time.

Brevet Sergeant Daryl Wayne Mundy, 56, did not attend the Adelaide Magistrates Court for the hearing, instead sending his lawyer, Daniel Weekley, on his behalf.

Weekley entered guilty pleas to charges of failing to stop and give particulars to a person and police, over the February 7 crash, which occurred just before noon on Morphett Street, just north of Whitmore Square.

He said both cars were approaching roadworks which required merging, and there was “contact” (lawyer speak for a collision) at low speed.

“There was an argument through open windows, the merge was at low speed as traffic was giving way,” he said.

Footage from the vehicle of the other driver, Allan Kelson, shows Mundy yelling out of his window, then leaving the scene.

Mr Kelson reported the incident to the Netley Police Station after following Mundy for a short distance to see if he would stop.

Weekley said his client was driving to work and that after watching footage of the collision he “accepts that he should have been aware at the time”.

He said if the sergeant — who had served as a police officer for 35-years — had been aware of the collision, he would have reported it.

No explanation was given as to why Mundy was not aware of the collision when he accepted he should have been aware of it.

Weekley told the court Mundy had an “exceptional history” of service as a police officer, including postings at Coober Pedy, northern suburbs patrols, investigations and that he had spent time as a peacekeeper in East Timor.

“He is a man of exceptional character … his life is not marked by a single event, but by years of unwavering service, quiet leadership and personal sacrifice,” Weekley claimed.

Weekly forgot to mention that Mundy’s “years of unwavering service” included his highly paid gig as deputy president of the sleazy Police Association of South Australia. Last year it was reported that serving officers and female police union staff were regularly bullied and belittled by a “boys’ club” of senior PASA officials – including Mundy.

Weekley asked the court to spare his client a conviction and said media reporting had affected both him and his family.

The poor dear.

A police prosecutor, clearly in on the charade, told the court it was accepted Sergeant Mundy did not realise he was involved in an accident at the time.

The prosecutor said Sergeant Mundy was driving a vehicle registered to his wife, which received a “scuff” during the collision, while “more moderate” damage was caused to the other car.

In sentencing, Magistrate Luke Davis said the offending was “at the lower end of the scale” and said the incident was a “blemish, quite a minor one, and completely out of character”.

Davis said the officer should not be treated different due to his job, and it was unlikely he would offend again. This is incorrect – police officers are awarded considerable trust and privileges – along with high salaries – and therefore should be held to a far higher standard than ordinary civilians.

Davis fined Sergeant Mundy and ordered he pay court costs, but did not record a conviction due to the officer’s alleged “incredible service to the community”.

Mr Kelson reported the incident to the Netley Police Station after following Sergeant Mundy for a short distance to see if he would stop.

He attended the hearing and, outside court, said he felt disappointed at the outcome.

“It just surprises me that this is how it all ended up,” he said.

Allan Kelson said he was disappointed with the outcome.  (ABC News)

He said he was not told anything about the other driver for three months and was “very, very surprised” when he discovered he was a police officer.

Mr Kelson said the back of his vehicle was damaged in the incident, which had since been repaired, and that he had also been issued an infringement over the crash.

In a statement, SA Police said they were “aware of the court outcome today” which would be referred for further investigation with the oversight of the Office of Public Integrity, which means the crooks from SAPOL and OPI will jointly whitewash the matter, as they always do.