Catholic schools chief denies wiping critical evidence after performing factory reset on phone, Icac hears

NSW Catholic Schools CEO Faces Sharp Questions Over Phone Reset During Anti-Corruption Inquiry

Wanderstayfinder.com – The head of Catholic Schools NSW told the state’s anti-corruption watchdog on Wednesday that he did not deliberately erase data from a work phone and tablet to shield himself from scrutiny, even though the timing of his factory reset — carried out on a Saturday morning just days after he had sat for questioning — has drawn pointed criticism from counsel assisting the inquiry.

Dallas McInerney, who leads one of Australia’s largest non-government school systems, gave evidence to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) last week as part of its public investigation into alleged corruption within the New South Wales Liberal party. On Friday of that same week, the commission asked him to supply messages exchanged with Reformer Jean-Claude Perrottet dating to 2021. McInerney complied and shared those communications. But when pressed on Wednesday about whether his device still held messages with other members of the Reformers faction, he disclosed that he had wiped the phone on Saturday morning, a decision he attributed to a banking scare rather than any desire to obscure records.

The Banking Explanation

McInerney said his bank, the National Australia Bank, contacted him on Friday to advise that his account had been “compromised by an unknown merchant.” Acting on that alert, he performed a full factory reset on the phone the following Saturday. He also reset an iPad, which he kept in his personal possession alongside the phone before both devices were surrendered to Catholic Schools NSW. He described the decision to reset the tablet as made “in the realisation I’m not likely returning to the company.”

Counsel assisting the inquiry, Dr Peggy Dwyer SC, characterised the reset as “a transparent attempt … to wipe evidence that would have been critical for this commission.” McInerney pushed back, noting that he had been aware of Icac’s public inquiry “for almost seven or eight weeks” before the reset took place.

“Had I wanted to do any malfeasance of that nature, I would have had quite a runway to do that. What triggered it was a compromise on my banking alerted to me by the NAB, and I have the case file number for that. I can share that with the commission.”

He confirmed that no contents — including personal messages and family photographs stored on the device — had been migrated to iCloud before the reset. He added that some additional messages had been handed to his legal team separately.

Commission Orders Full Message Production

On Wednesday afternoon, the commission directed that all messages between McInerney and members of the Reformers faction spanning April 2019 through July 2023 be produced by 1 pm the following Thursday. The order underscores the breadth of communications the inquiry considers potentially relevant to its examination of factional conduct and alleged improper fundraising.

Pre-Inquiry Meetings Come Under Scrutiny

McInerney acknowledged meeting with two Reformers — Robert Assaf and Jeremy Greenwood — in the weeks immediately preceding his appearance before the commission. Icac had previously heard that Assaf met Greenwood on multiple occasions during the year, with Assaf stating the discussions concerned his summons to give evidence.

McInerney described his sit-down with Assaf, which was attended by the sisters of both men, as a simple “check-in on Robert.” He said he met Greenwood on at least two separate occasions, during which the two discussed “matters in the public domain” connected to the Icac inquiry.

The Taylor Connection and Fundraising Questions

The inquiry also examined McInerney’s relationship with Angus Taylor, the now opposition leader, with whom McInerney is a factional ally. The commission heard that McInerney “pestered” Taylor to arrange a meeting with a member of a Christian Liberal factional group currently under investigation for soliciting illegal donations. Last week, McInerney had denied that a message referencing a plan to “shake down Angus” related to donations flowing to that group.

On Wednesday, the inquiry turned to a 2020 request from Reformer Christian Ellis asking McInerney to help organise a meeting with Taylor, who at the time served as federal energy minister. Messages between the two men showed that after an initial attempt fell through, Ellis followed up days later:

“I know I’m being a pest, but any luck with Angus by any chance? Next Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday?”

McInerney replied:

“Don’t worry about pestering. That’s how things happen. I’m pestering him [Taylor] big time.”

McInerney accepted on Wednesday that the correspondence, including a later message from Ellis reading “You’re a legend,” indicated he had successfully secured the meeting.

Dwyer further revealed that Ellis and Jeremy Greenwood, who co-ran the lobbying firm Beckington, were involved in fundraising for an organisation variously described as the “Hume Foundation” or “Hume Forum.” She told the commission the body raised funds for Taylor and the Liberal party in his federal seat. A 2019 email from the organisation’s chair to Ellis stated:

“Dallas will sort your dollar arrangements out with AT.”

McInerney confirmed that “AT” referred to Angus Taylor but said he did not recall discussing any such arrangements with Ellis. He rejected the suggestion that fundraising support had been channelled to Ellis through a Beckington retainer paid by Catholic Schools NSW.

Taylor himself is not named in Icac’s allegatio, the formal document setting out the commission’s jurisdiction and the matters under investigation. The inquiry’s focus remains on factional conduct, alleged improper donations, and the role of intermediaries in moving money between donors and party structures. McInerney’s position at the intersection of a major school system, factional networks, and a sitting opposition leader makes his testimony a focal point of the proceeding.