A former NSW police officer has revealed why he blew the whistle on his colleagues after he saw footage of them in a wild brawl involving NRL star Tom Starling.
The Raiders hooker was attending a 21st birthday with his family at Shady Palms restaurant on the NSW Central Coast in December 2020 when his mother was allegedly insulted by a security guard.
Chaos followed, and the Canberra Raiders player came off second best when he was allegedly repeatedly punched by police officers at the scene.
Starling was restrained while two officers allegedly struck him – yet police still charged him with assaulting four officers.
The matter was later played out in court, with Starling cleared of all charges stemming from the brawl.
Detective Sergeant Kurt Hayward has now revealed his reaction when he watched CCTV footage of the incident the following day.
Canberra Raiders hooker Tom Starling was allegedly set upon by police and punched in the head until he blacked out during a December 2020 incident at a NSW bar
Detective Sergeant Kurt Hayward (pictured) watched CCTV footage of the incident the following day and felt the need to make a report
Starling is pictured allegedly being punched by a police officer during the wild brawl
He saw Sergeant Evan Huw Prowse and Senior Constable Steven Lockwood Brown allegedly assaulting a defenceless Starling.
Hayward, who was a NSW police officer for 23 years, was stunned when he saw Sergeant Prowse allegedly punch Starling at least twice, before Constable Brown also allegedly hit the NRL player.
Hayward decided he had to report the incident, which he claimed was a classic case of ‘overcharging’ by Prowse and Brown.
Hayward decided to make a report to his superiors even though he knew he would suffer consequences.
He reported what he saw to his boss, a crime manager, who then watched the footage with him.
The crime manager initially said Starling was resisting arrest.
‘So I sat and pondered for a little while and then started to write the career suicide note,’ Hayward said.
He wrote to the police commissioner to report the incident, and an investigation was launched days later.
Starling (centre) was eventually cleared of all charges stemming from the brawl
Starling (pictured with partner Chelsea Balzan) pretended that the legal battle didn’t take its toll on him, but later admitted, ‘100 per cent it was’
Hayward was appointed as the officer in charge of the Starling matter and was instructed to withdraw most of the charges against the Canberra Raiders forward.
While feeling he did the right thing, he knew there would be blowback from other police officers.
He claims his peers at Gosford Police Station effectively blacklisted him and some even left anonymous notes on his desk.
The incident led to Hayward quitting the force 18 months later and he says he’s still angry with NSW Police.
‘There’s nothing more hypocritical than someone in that position doing those things. You should be arresting people who do that, not doing it yourself,’ Hayward said.
Starling was originally hit with seven charges, including five counts of assaulting police, affray, and attempting to take an officer’s gun.
In early 2023, a magistrate dismissed the final charges against Starling, ruling that the police breached their duty and ‘assaulted’ him.
Prowse and Brown were charged with common assault.
They both pleaded not guilty and their trial is due to start next week.
Starling has been in good form for Canberra since he was cleared of all charges
Starling (pictured, centre) is planning to sue NSW Police
Starling still plans to sue NSW Police, but when the dummy-half reflects on the incident, his primary concern was playing footy again, not his battered face.
He said it had been a difficult two years trying to prove his innocence.
‘It was hard to show up sometimes, put that brave face on and pretend like it wasn’t affecting me, but 100 per cent it was,’ he said.
‘I used to go to games and just think everyone was thinking, “Oh, there’s that thug Tom Starling that assaulted police officers” and did all those things that they said about me.’
The NSW Police Force incurred a record $40million in settlements and legal costs last financial year.
The taxpayer-funded payouts came from civil claims against officers for serious allegations, including wrongful arrest, unlawful searches, and malicious prosecution.
