A former athlete and police officer known as Witness J has denied allegations that he fabricated claims of sexual misconduct against veteran broadcaster Alan Jones for financial gain. The accused broadcaster faces 20 counts of indecent assault and two counts of sexual touching involving six alleged victims between 2003 and 2020.

The trial is being held at the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney, where Witness J has been questioned extensively by Jones’ defence barrister, Gabrielle Bashir SC, who has challenged his credibility and raised doubts about his motives. Over the past two days, much of the cross-examination has focused on Witness J’s past, including his retirement from law enforcement after being served a showcause notice for serious misconduct, his financial difficulties, and alleged inconsistencies in his recollection of events that allegedly took place more than 20 years ago.

Witness J has alleged that Jones indecently touched and kissed him on several occasions at different locations including Jones’ Circular Quay apartment, his Southern Highlands property, and a hotel in Canberra. He testified that Jones paid him weekly stipends and gifted him a car and a mobile phone during the time of their association when J was a teenager and later young adult. However, defence counsel questioned the timing of these gifts, citing phone records and registration documents that disputed that these were made while J was still at school.

During cross-examination, Ms Bashir suggested that Witness J, who resigned from his six-figure police role amid financial strain, might have seen the allegations as an opportunity for monetary benefit following Jones’ arrest in November 2024. Witness J repeatedly denied any financial motive, stating he sought only justice and was not pursuing civil claims, as he believed the statute of limitations had expired. He also refuted suggestions that he had offered former partners money in exchange for supportive statements, clarifying comments made in text messages to a former girlfriend as unrelated to financial reward.

The defence also probed alleged discrepancies in Witness J’s memory, including his admission of a “false memory” regarding an incident where Jones was said to have grabbed his upper thigh during a car ride. Ms Bashir characterized some of the initial accounts as an attempt to create a “schoolboy narrative” of the abuse. Witness J acknowledged difficulties in recalling the precise timing of events but maintained that the assaults occurred as described.

Throughout the proceedings, Witness J denied making any false statements. He rejected the defence’s implication that he invented or exaggerated the allegations, asserting his intention was not to deceive or pursue financial compensation but to seek accountability for the alleged assaults.

Alan Jones, aged 85, has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The prosecution and defence continue to present evidence as the trial proceeds.