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| NSW Liberal Gareth Ward says he was targeted by blackmailers after ordering massage | NSW Liberal Gareth Ward says he was targeted by blackmailers after ordering massage |
| (1 day later) | |
| MP says he opened his New York hotel room door to find two men who told him they were filming and wanted money | |
| Joshua Robertson | |
| Thu 31 Aug 2017 02.56 BST | |
| First published on Thu 31 Aug 2017 01.40 BST | |
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| A New South Wales politician on holiday in New York has told police he became the target of an extortion bid after paying US$100 for a “normal, standard massage” at his hotel. | A New South Wales politician on holiday in New York has told police he became the target of an extortion bid after paying US$100 for a “normal, standard massage” at his hotel. |
| Gareth Ward, the MP for Kiama, said when two men who came to his room at the InterContinental New York Times Square on Tuesday night made clear “more was on offer”, he asked them to leave. | Gareth Ward, the MP for Kiama, said when two men who came to his room at the InterContinental New York Times Square on Tuesday night made clear “more was on offer”, he asked them to leave. |
| They then told the partly undressed MP they were underage, began filming him and threatened to put footage on the internet unless he paid US$1000, Ward told the ABC. | They then told the partly undressed MP they were underage, began filming him and threatened to put footage on the internet unless he paid US$1000, Ward told the ABC. |
| Ward, who is legally blind, said he was “terrified” of being bashed and took the pair downstairs, saying he was going to get money from a bank machine. | Ward, who is legally blind, said he was “terrified” of being bashed and took the pair downstairs, saying he was going to get money from a bank machine. |
| Instead he sought help from a hotel concierge who called police and the men fled. | Instead he sought help from a hotel concierge who called police and the men fled. |
| The New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, defended Ward’s character on Thursday. | The New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, defended Ward’s character on Thursday. |
| “Gareth is one of the hardest-working members in my parliamentary team and I am proud to call him my colleague,” Berejiklian said. | “Gareth is one of the hardest-working members in my parliamentary team and I am proud to call him my colleague,” Berejiklian said. |
| The New York Post quoted unnamed “law enforcement sources” who described Ward, 36, as being the target of a blackmail bid by two unidentified males. | The New York Post quoted unnamed “law enforcement sources” who described Ward, 36, as being the target of a blackmail bid by two unidentified males. |
| Ward had called a number given by an acquaintance to order the massage, sources reportedly told the newspaper. | Ward had called a number given by an acquaintance to order the massage, sources reportedly told the newspaper. |
| Ward told both the ABC and the Nine Network the suggestion he had asked for a “special massage” was untrue. | Ward told both the ABC and the Nine Network the suggestion he had asked for a “special massage” was untrue. |
| Ward told the ABC he had “requested a normal massage as people on holidays will often do”. | Ward told the ABC he had “requested a normal massage as people on holidays will often do”. |
| “I asked for a massage but when it became clear that more was on offer I asked them to leave and then they became aggressive, demanding money,” he said. “They said to me, ‘We’re under age, we’ll put this on the internet unless you give us money’. | “I asked for a massage but when it became clear that more was on offer I asked them to leave and then they became aggressive, demanding money,” he said. “They said to me, ‘We’re under age, we’ll put this on the internet unless you give us money’. |
| “I said, ‘I didn’t order this, get out of my room, I want you to leave, I don’t have any cash’.” | “I said, ‘I didn’t order this, get out of my room, I want you to leave, I don’t have any cash’.” |
| A New York police department spokesman told the ABC that investigators had no leads on the identity of the would-be blackmailers, who had fled the scene “empty-handed”. | A New York police department spokesman told the ABC that investigators had no leads on the identity of the would-be blackmailers, who had fled the scene “empty-handed”. |
| Ward, a state parliamentary secretary for education and for the Illawarra and the south coast, is reportedly overseas on work but his trip to New York was on personal leave. | Ward, a state parliamentary secretary for education and for the Illawarra and the south coast, is reportedly overseas on work but his trip to New York was on personal leave. |
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