Inside ICAC's Operation Rosny: The Liberal Operative, the Fugitive Developer, and $2 Million in Questioned Payments

Liberal operative Jeremy Greenwood told the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on 9 September 2026 that a request to be "wired for sound" before a meeting with fellow Liberals was "just a silly comment," as counsel assisting the inquiry pressed him on whether the exchange pointed to a prior arrangement to secretly record political colleagues.

ICAC is New South Wales's anti-corruption watchdog, with the power to hold public hearings and make findings of corrupt conduct. The exchange sits at the centre of ICAC's Operation Rosny, a public inquiry examining whether Greenwood, Charles Perrottet, and Christian Ellis shared in $2 million in payments between 2020 and 2023 from fugitive developer Jean Nassif or his company Toplace in exchange for political outcomes. The alleged outcomes include the removal of NSW building commissioner David Chandler and damage to the career of former NSW Liberal minister David Elliott. Greenwood and Perrottet have denied taking illegal political donations; Ellis is overseas and is not expected to give evidence during the hearings. Former NSW premier Dominic Perrottet is not a person of interest and is not accused of any wrongdoing. (The Guardian, 9 September 2026)

Greenwood wrote to Toplace executive Sharangan Maheswaran ahead of a meeting with Liberal figures: "Can I get Shane to wire me for sound tomorrow, and you guys pick up the bill?" Maheswaran replied: "I can give you the equipment, or Shane can." Greenwood told the commission the reference was to a private investigator employed by Toplace, called the message "silly" and "stupid," and said the meeting never took place. Counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC put it to Greenwood that the message indicated he had previously discussed with Maheswaran recording a conversation for later use. Greenwood denied this. (The Guardian, 9 September 2026)

Maheswaran is named as a person of interest in a separate ICAC allegation, has previously denied any wrongdoing, and was expected to appear before the commission later in the week of 9 September. The wire-tap exchange is not the only communication between the two men under scrutiny. Maheswaran also wrote to Greenwood: "Let's get that material to FriendlyJordies, a one-hour documentary on [Elliott], and then follow it up by releasing the mistress photo." FriendlyJordies is a popular Australian political YouTube channel known for satirical and investigative content. Greenwood accepted the reference likely pointed to David Elliott but said he could not recall what material Maheswaran meant. He also told ICAC he cannot recall a plan for the YouTuber to run a negative documentary on Elliott. (The Guardian, 9 September 2026)

The Elliott material connects to a broader pattern the inquiry has already heard about. Greenwood and members of the conservative factional group the Reformers created a "shit sheet" to discredit David Elliott, including an allegation of an extramarital affair that Elliott has strenuously denied and that witnesses, including Greenwood, have accepted is untrue. A factional group, in this context, is an organised bloc within a political party that works together to advance shared interests and candidates. Greenwood described the document as a "defensive move" against then-police minister Elliott, who he claimed had been "actively attacking" him. He defended the "shit sheet" despite admitting he knew there was no affair. (The Guardian, 9 September 2026; The Saturday Paper, 12 August 2026; The Guardian, 11 August 2026)

The Chandler strand is equally detailed. In June 2021, Greenwood wrote to Maheswaran about a plan to "kill off" stories critical of defects in Toplace apartments and to "get a story up about how the commissioner is a loose cannon fucking up." Greenwood admitted passing on a video of Chandler in which Chandler claimed an "informal list" of dodgy certifiers had been provided to banks, sharing it with a journalist and with Charles Perrottet. A certifier is an accredited professional who signs off that a building meets safety and regulatory standards. Greenwood denied, however, that he, Ellis, and Perrottet had a joint strategy to discredit Chandler. Asked why he continued to brief a journalist about Chandler after the building commissioner's July 2022 resignation, Greenwood said he was "just helping a friend" rather than being paid. (The Guardian, 9 September 2026)

Operation Rosny formally investigates potential breaches of electoral funding laws between 2019 and 2023. Electoral funding laws govern how political parties and candidates may receive and spend money, including bans on certain donations from property developers in NSW. Greenwood was the first witness called when the public inquiry sessions opened on 10 August 2026 and has spent three days in the witness box, with the commission expected to recall him. The inquiry has also addressed ancillary matters: on 11 August 2026, the commission stated it had found no evidence of services being undertaken by Beckington for Catholic Schools NSW during the period in question. On 4 September 2026, Greenwood tried calling Maheswaran and said "I followed up Charles. Waiting to hear back" in relation to a Budget Estimates hearing. On 28 August, the commission examined communications between Greenwood and another party dated 15 December 2022, after a parliamentary inquiry had been announced. (ICAC Operation Rosny transcript, 27 July 2026; ICAC Operation Rosny transcript, 10 August 2026; ICAC Operation Rosny transcript, 11 August 2026; ICAC Operation Rosny transcript, 28 August 2026; ICAC Operation Rosny transcript, 4 September 2026; ABC News, 15 August 2026)

Greenwood was also accused during the hearings of fabricating "pink paper" evidence and has denied offering political favours to Jean Nassif. (SMH, 9 September 2026)

The broader context here matters for what it reveals about the intersection of party factionalism, property development interests, and the institutions designed to keep both in check. The inquiry is examining whether factional operatives allegedly conspired with a developer to engineer political outcomes, including the removal of a statutory office holder, using tactics that ranged from media manipulation to covert recording. Each denial from Greenwood places the weight on the documentary trail: the messages, the "pink paper," and the communications with Maheswaran that the commission is methodically placing before him. Whether counsel assisting can convert that trail into findings of corrupt conduct will depend on evidence still to be heard, including from Maheswaran himself.