Sunday Times, Perth

         March 3, 1996

         Mystery of missing file
         
         A PERTH security and
         forensic investigator believes
         that the UWA personnel file
         on David Rindos was deliber-
         ately concealed or destroyed.
         
         The investigator told the
         university he could not solve the
         file's disappearance from its
         records registry.
         
         In a letter to UWA's registrar,
         Malcolm Orr, investigator John
         Horton said the disappearance
         remained a mystery.
         
         He said he had conducted
         extensive inquiries but had to
         advise there was no trace of the
         missing document.
         
         In his 119-page report he drew
         attention to physical security
         shortcomings to the university's
         administration building.
         
         Mr Horton said the file was
         last noted on a UWA audit docu-
         ment on June 15, 1994, "as being
         in the hands of Mr Bob Farrelly,
         the UWA industrial officer".
         
         "Some time between that date
         and the end of July 1994, follow-
         ing a request from UWA solici-
         tors Mallesons Stephen Jacques,
         a large box of papers relating to
         Dr Rindos, including his
         personal file, was forwarded to
         their office," he wrote.
         
         "No inventory was ever made
         of the papers in the box by UWA
         staff prior to conveyance or by
         Mallesons upon receipt.
         
         "UWA archivist Christine
         Bapty and central records man-
         ager Jenny Edgecombe went to
         Mallesons during February 1995
         to recover papers from the box.
         
         "Both ladies have confirmed
         the file was in the box at the
         time of their visit and are
         adamant they did not take it
         with them, as has been intimat-
         ed.
         
         "They also informed me that
         at no time during their visit to
         Mallesons were they asked for
         any form of identification.
         
         "It would appear from their
         experience that anyone could
         call at Mallesons, say they were
         from UWA, and be given access
         to papers without question."
         
         Mr Horton said the box was at
         Mallesons until March 16, 1995,
         when it was returned to UWA.
         
         UWA staff realised it was
         missing when Dr Rindos made
         another application for it.
         "My inquiries revealed that
         once the file was found to be
         missing, all areas concemed
         made several unsuccessful
         searches in an effort to locate
         it," he continued.

         "Nothwithstanding Mallesons'
         advice that the file was returned
         to UWA, there is no record of
         this in the central records
         computer and I have not been
         able to locate any members of
         UWA's staff who can recall see-
         ing the file since the box of pap-
         ers was returned."

         He said it was unlikely it was
         overlooked in searches.
         He also said it was unlikely,
         given the file's size, that Malle-
         sons mislaid or accidently
         destroyed it.

         "The file has been deliberately
         concealed or destroyed by a
         person or persons unknown with
         the intention of causing embar-
         rassment to UWA or concern to
         Dr Rindos," he said.

         "This is, in my view, the most
         likely possibility."