Ben Roberts-Smith’s girlfriend has branded his former brother-in-arms Andrew Hastie a “traitor” in a deleted Instagram post.
Sarah Matulin made the comment under the Liberal MP’s Anzac Day photo showing the former SAS commander attending the Dawn Service in Mandurah, which he captioned, “Remembering the fallen, honouring our veterans and ADF — a responsibility for all Australians, young and old. Lest We Forget”
The PR guru wrote below the photo, “Yeah you’re a traitor”, before the comment was deleted soon after, Nine Newspapers first reported.
In a statement to The Australian through the Victoria Cross recipient’s lawyer, Karen Espiner, Ms Matulin confirmed she had made the comment.
“It was a mistake to make that comment in a public forum and wasn’t done with Ben’s knowledge,” Ms Matulin said.
Mr Roberts-Smith has been publicly dating Ms Matulin since splitting from his ex-wife Emma in early 2021.
The pair attended Saturday’s Dawn Service at the Currumbin RSL club on the Gold Coast on Saturday where Mr Roberts-Smith was seen receiving a warm reception from the public.
Speaking to reporters after the service on Saturday, Mr Roberts-Smith said he had received “overwhelming” support.
“I never thought about not coming,” he said. “I was always going to be here.”
On Saturday his Victoria Cross citation was among the string of medals attached to the breast of his suit.
Mr Hastie, who served in Afghanistan as a troop commander in the Special Air Service Regiment (SASR), testified against Mr Roberts-Smith in his defamation trial with Nine Newspapers over stories alleging he had committed war crimes.
The Liberal MP told the court that he served as an officer in the SAS on missions alongside Mr Roberts-Smith in 2012 though the pair had very limited contact. According to Mr Hastie, by 2013 he had heard multiple reports from soldiers claiming Mr Roberts-Smith had kicked a man off a cliff.
The federal court found in the 2023 civil trial that, on the balance of probabilities, the allegations in the articles were true.
Mr Hastie later told the ABC he felt sadness and relief at the finding.
“Sadness for the Afghan lives lost and the families who are hurt, sadness for the relationships severed and sadness for the reputations destroyed, both individually and at the institutional level with the SASR particularly,” he told the ABC.
“Relief, though, that the cold hard truth that many of the regiment have been carrying inside them for many years, is now out in the public domain and it has been validated by a Federal Court Justice.”
It’s not clear whether Mr Hastie will be called to give evidence at Mr Roberts-Smith’s upcoming criminal trial in the NSW Supreme Court.
Australian Federal Police arrested the 47-year-old at Sydney Airport on April 17 and charged him with war crimes.
He was spent nine nights in custody on remand at Sydney’s Silverwater Correctional Centre before Judge Greg Grogin granted him bail.
The Victoria Cross recipient has yet to enter pleas to any of the charges, but has denied the allegations.
Under his bail conditions, his movements are restricted and he must report to a local police station three times a week.
In a statement to media on the Gold Coast last Sunday, Mr Roberts-Smith said, “For the past 10 years my family and I have been subject to a campaign to convince Australians that I’ve acted improperly in my service in Afghanistan.
“As I’ve always maintained, I categorically deny all these allegations.
“And while I would’ve preferred these charges not have been brought, I will be taking this opportunity to finally clear my name.”
Mr Roberts-Smith said he was proud of his service in Afghanistan.
“While I was there, I always acted within my values, within my training and within the rules of engagement,” he said.
Mr Roberts-Smith was “extremely proud” of the men and women who served alongside him in Afghanistan, particularly those who he said paid the “ultimate sacrifice”, he said.
He thanked his family, as well as his supporters, whose well-wishes meant a “great deal” to him and were “extremely humbling”.
Mr Roberts-Smith said his children and family “already unfortunately suffered” due to what he described as a “deliberate, sensational arrest” on April 7.
He described the encounter as “an unnecessary spectacle” and asked the media to give his family privacy.
“I understand this journey will be long, I understand this journey will be difficult,” he said.
“But I can promise everybody that I have never run from a fight in my life. I will never give up, and I will always be in the fight.”
