Former escort backflips on Thomson claims to A Current Affair

A former Sydney escort has denied she ever slept with embattled Federal MP Craig Thomson and says she told A Current Affair she was withdrawing her claims.

The unnamed Gold Coast woman told Today Tonight she was contacted by A Current Affair reporter Justin Armsden out of the blue, shown a photo of Thomson and asked if he was a former client when she was working as an escort named  ‘Elena’ in Sydney in May 2005.

“He showed me a picture of a newspaper article of Craig Thomson and said, ‘Do you know this man?’

“I said ‘I’m not entirely sure.’ He looked vaguely familiar. But he only flashed the picture at me and he wouldn’t give me any information about this person.”

She claims to have had no idea the man was Federal MP Craig Thomson.

“He didn’t tell me anything about the political implications of it all, that I was supposedly bringing down the government. I had no idea about that.”

She said she was later called by Armsden and offered $50,000 for an interview, to be flown in the Nine helicopter to their Brisbane studio but declined.

She said when ACA executive producer Grant Williams offered her $60,000 and a flight to Sydney she agreed.

“So I thought ok, alright. $60 grand just to tell a story about some guy that I met ages ago, what’s the harm in that?”

The woman admitted that she signed a Statutory Declaration to the effect that she had slept with Thomson.

Nine’s interview, which still hasn’t aired, became the basis of further allegations about Thomson, already under fire for allegedly misuing union credit cards.

ACA met with Thomson last month in Canberra but he declined to view the interview.

But the woman says she began to have doubts about whether Thomson was a former client and advised ACA 3 days before Armsden appeared on air, discussing the claims with host Tracy Grimshaw.

The woman showed Today Tonight her passport as exiting Australia in April 2005 and returned in June 2005, and says she told ACA she was retracting her story.

“(I said) I’m not signing any contract to say this is the truth, because I’m totally unsure now. You want me to be 100% sure? I’m no longer 100% sure and I’m no longer a credible witness.”

Asked why she signed the Statutory Declaration, she said, “….I only signed at the time because I believed 100% positively that was him. Then when I looked through my records I believed it not to be so.

“I had not given permission for anything to be aired, and they went ahead and did it anyway.”

However Nine hasn’t aired the interview passing their information to the Victoria Police Fraud and Extortion Squad. But the allegations about Thomson have impacted on his political career, already in a tailspin.

Nine had also previously denied a $60,000 fee, but acknowledged it was “thereabouts.”

In conflicting terminology she also acknowledged telling ACA she was 100% sure she recognised Craig Thomson.

“I’d like to apologise to Mr. Thomson, his family, his friends, everyone this has affected,” she said.

“It’s a complete case of mistaken identity. I feel terrible about it.”

Since doing her interview with Today Tonight the woman has been interviewed by members of the Victorian Fraud Squad this afternoon.

Today Tonight says the woman contacted them through her solicitor and hasn’t paid her for the interview.

UPDATE:  A CURRENT AFFAIR STATEMENT:

The allegations made by Today Tonight this evening detail a number of assertions that are incorrect and/or were never made by A Current Affair.

To be absolutely clear,

• ACA detailed new evidence regarding a $770 transaction incurred on Craig Thomson’s HSU credit card on 7 May 2005. ACA have at no time asserted the woman featured on Today Tonight this evening was the prostitute involved in that transaction. To the contrary, ACA is aware that a prostitute other than the woman interviewed tonight was allegedly involved.
• The woman interviewed by Today Tonight swore a statutory declaration to A Current Affair in the presence of legal counsel that she had sex with Craig Thomson on at least one occasion.
• The woman also provided A Current Affair with an extensive on camera interview.
• Following Craig Thomson’s speech to parliament the woman sent a text message to A Current Affair indicating that she was panicked and was no longer a credible witness. However, when contacted by reporter Justin Armsden she indicated verbally that she stood by her positive identification of Thomson.
• As has been previously reported, the decision was then made to put all claims to Craig Thomson himself. That occurred in his Parliament House office on 23 May 2012.
• After consultation with Victorian Fraud and Extortion Squad detectives it became clear more than one escort associated with Boardroom Escorts was allegedly involved.
• A Current Affair then took the view it had two separate elements to address. The first being the revelation of the previously unidentified transaction of the 7 May 2005 which we broadcast. The second, being the statutory declaration and on camera interview by the former escort indicating she had slept with Craig Thomson, which we chose NOT to broadcast.
• At no time has ACA named, identified or depicted the woman who appeared on Today Tonight this evening.
• At no time has ACA paid any amount of money to any person associated with this investigation. As indicated previously, a fee had been discussed, however no money would have been forthcoming until the allegations had been substantiated, a contract agreed and the interview broadcast.
• As the woman’s credibility is obviously now seriously an issue, something we strongly suspected, ACA now believes more so that it should be left for the Police to investigate given their extensive powers to compel witnesses and to cross examine witnesses under oath.
Accordingly ACA made the proper decision not to air the interview and we’re more fortified of that view having seen the rubbish that was dished up tonight.

Grant Williams
Executive Producer
A Current Affair