The West Australian detective who made international headlines when he rescued kidnapped girl Cleo Smith has been accused of professional misconduct by the state’s Corruption and Crime Commission after releasing confidential information to a young journalist he struck up a relationship with.
Homicide squad Detective Senior Sergeant Cameron Blaine led the raid of abductor Terence Kelly’s Carnarvon home in November 2021, asking Cleo for her name, prompting the four-year-old’s famous response, “My name is Cleo”.
Detective Cameron Blaine (left) holding a photo of Cleo Smith during a press conference about her rescue.Credit: Nine News Perth
After public praise for the rescue was heaped upon Blaine, allegations of misconduct emerged and he was stood down on full pay in September 2022, pending a CCC investigation.
He resigned from WA Police shortly before the CCC report was tabled on Thursday.
The report alleged Blaine released confidential information to the journalist, and misused a police vehicle.
“In each case his behaviour could constitute reasonable grounds for the termination of his employment,” the report read.
Detective Senior Sergeant Cameron Blaine at an event where he was formally recognised for his part in the rescue of Cleo Smith. Credit: Cameron Myles
“The commission has formed an opinion of police misconduct.”
Kelly, 37, snatched Cleo from the Quobba Blowholes campsite, a remote coastal area in WA’s north, as she slept beside her parents and baby sister on the night of October 16, 2021.
Her disappearance sparked one of the biggest missing persons investigations in Australian history, with more than 100 police officers assigned to the case, dubbed Taskforce Rodia.
Nearly three weeks into the search, CCTV footage of a car entering Carnarvon on the night of the abduction and mobile phone data led detectives to storm Kelly’s home at midnight on November 3.
Cleo was found awake sitting in a bedroom playing with toys.
Kelly confessed to abducting the little girl and was later sentenced to 13 years and six months jail for the kidnapping. He is appealing his sentence.
