Alan Jones accuser told friend radio kingpin was ‘in love with him’ years before revealing alleged indecent assaults, court hears
A former radio staffer's friend testified in Alan Jones's Sydney indecent assault trial that the alleged victim had described the veteran broadcaster as being "in love with him" and regularly flirting with him, years before disclosing claims of indecent assault. The witness's evidence forms part of the prosecution case against Jones, 85, who denies 22 charges of indecent assault and sexual touching without consent brought by six men over alleged incidents between 2003 and 2023.
The witness said the radio staffer only confided details of the alleged assaults to him in 2023, after journalist Kate McClymont contacted him ahead of publishing allegations that triggered a police investigation and Jones's eventual arrest. He recounted the staffer, then intoxicated, describing being inappropriately touched by Jones, including at a hotel where the pair had reportedly been seen going into a bedroom together. Separately, the court heard concerns from the defence about a threatening email sent to another witness, Jason Morrison, which NSW Police are now investigating, prompting a warning from the judge against interfering with witnesses. Jones denies all charges, which relate to his decades-long broadcasting career.
- Witness says Jones's accuser called him "in love with him" pre-disclosure
- Alan Jones, 85, denies 22 indecent assault charges from six men
- Police probe threatening email sent to another trial witness
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Alan Jones is one of Australia's best-known and most influential radio broadcasters, having spent decades as a leading voice in Sydney talkback radio. He is currently on trial in Sydney facing 22 charges of indecent assault and sexual touching without consent, brought by six men who allege incidents took place between 2003 and 2023, during Jones's long broadcasting career. Jones, now 85, denies all the charges.
The case became public after journalist Kate McClymont investigated and published allegations against Jones, prompting a police investigation that led to his arrest. Several former radio staffers and associates are giving evidence during the trial, with the court hearing testimony from witnesses about conversations and incidents said to relate to the allegations.
The trial matters because it involves a public figure with a long and prominent media career, and because the allegations span two decades, raising questions that will be tested through witness accounts and cross-examination as the case proceeds.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Those who find the allegations credible argue that a young man being flattered by, or even infatuated with, a powerful and charismatic older figure is entirely compatible with that same person later being subjected to unwanted touching; admiration, confusion and fear of professional consequences commonly coexist with abuse, and delayed disclosure is a well-documented pattern among genuine victims, particularly when the alleged perpetrator holds significant influence over their career. On this view, the friend's testimony about earlier flirtatious remarks does not undermine the case but rather reflects the complicated, non-linear way people process and eventually name experiences of unwanted sexual contact.
The case against
Those sympathetic to the defence argue that evidence the complainant once described being "in love with" Jones and regularly flirting with him raises legitimate questions about the nature of their relationship and the reliability of allegations disclosed only years later, after a journalist's intervention and amid a wider group of complainants. On this view, a fair trial requires the jury to weigh whether contemporaneous accounts of mutual, willing interaction are consistent with later claims of non-consensual touching, and to take seriously the possibility that recollections have been reshaped by hindsight, publicity or the influence of other witnesses coming forward together.