Details of Daniel Andrews’ car crash, which left a teenage cyclist seriously injured, were covered up by police to ‘avoid implicating a political figure’,’ a bombshell review has found.
Ryan Meuleman was 15-years-old and riding his bike in Blairgowrie on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula when he was struck by the Andrews’ family SUV on January 7, 2013.
Mr Meuleman was airlifted to The Royal Children’s Hospital with life-threatening injuries, including a punctured lung, broken ribs, a ruptured spleen and internal bleeding.
The former premier has insisted his wife came to a ‘complete stop’ and ‘turned right from a stationary position’ moments before Mr Meuleman T-boned the Ford Territory.
Police closed the case without pressing charges, and officers were later cleared of any wrongdoing by the corruption watchdog.
But more than a decade later, a bombshell review of the crash found the police investigation that supported the Andrews’ version of events was ‘deeply flawed’.
The 36-page assessment, conducted by the state’s former Assistant Commissioner for Traffic and Operations, Dr Raymond Shuey, asserted the SUV struck the teen after ‘travelling at speed’ and on the wrong side of the road.
‘The statements from both Daniel and Catherine Andrews that their vehicle stopped at Melbourne Rd are not consistent with impact consequences, nor the report by (witness) Brad Morgan of the squeal of tyres prior to impact.
Ryan Meuleman was 15-years-old and riding his bike in Blairgowrie on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula when he was struck by the Andrews’ SUV on January 7, 2013
‘The effective vehicle stopping distance of 19.2m following impact is indicative of a speed of 45km/h prior to impact.
‘The version as provided by Catherine and Daniel Andrews is considered improbable and implausible. The truth is still outstanding,’ Dr Shuey wrote.
‘It is most probable that the vehicle undertook a sweep turn at speed, cutting the corner and still on the incorrect side of the roadway in Ridley Street, 27 metres from Melbourne Road when the collision occurred.’
The report, commissioned by Mr Meuleman’s lawyers as part of ongoing Supreme Court damages proceedings into the crash, found the ‘propagation of a lie’ started when police recorded the driver’s name.
In a Traffic Incident System (TIS) report made by police hours after the crash recorded the driver’s name as ‘Catherine Louie Kesik’ – Mrs Andrews’ maiden name.
The report found the name was contrary to that recorded in the investigation notes, TAC reports statements and ‘contemporaneous notes’ made by police.
It asserted that the ‘irregularity’ with Mrs Andrews’ name would be a ‘standout’ for supervisors, insurance, and legal reviewers.
‘It is my opinion that this deception is part of a course of conduct and a component of an overt cover-up to avoid implicating a political figure in a life-threatening crash,’ Dr Shuey wrote.
‘Failure by supervisors and reviewers to identify this or seek explanation is inexcusable.’
Dr Shuey added that Victoria Police did not show a competent professional practice as they failed to follow a ‘rudimentary examination’ of evidence in the investigation, which was demonstrated in their ‘hasty and illogical conclusion’.
The review explained the police report lacked critical information including photographs, measurements and professional interview techniques.
Dr Shuey said investigators failed to account for the available evidence and labelled their conclusion as ‘baseless and unsupported’.
He added the ‘negligent approach’ undermined the integrity of the investigation and also jeopardised the ‘pursuit of justice’.
Police also repeatedly refused to provide Mr Meuleman’s family with details of the driver, despite it being the duty of police to do so.
A bombshell review asserts details from Daniel and Catherine Andrews’ crash with the teen cyclist was covered up ‘to avoid implicating a political figure’
Premier Daniel Andrews’ Ford Territory car after the crash with Ryan Meuleman. Police reported Mrs Andrews as being behind the wheel at the time of the accidentÂ
Dr Shuey claimed the decision to not provide the family with the driver’s details was ‘designed to conceal the identity of those involved’.
It also questioned why Mr Andrews to drive his car away with a smashed windscreen.
‘If police, it is a dereliction of duty, if Daniel Andrews, it is the removal of evidence and in any event dangerous/careless driving at a minimum,’ it said.
But they later changed the documents to state that no test was given, citing that Mrs. Andrews “did not smell of intoxicating liquor.Â
The review concludes that another significant oversight was the police’s failure to verify the identity of the driver of the government vehicle involved in the serious crash.Â
‘Witness Jane Crittenden states she viewed Catherine Andrews in the passenger seat after the crash,’ it asserts.
‘In my opinion, this investigative failure is a deliberate omission. It … leaves the question of who was driving unresolved and in dispute,’ the review says.Â
The Shuey review was based on analysis of FOI documents, witness statements and his own reconstruction of the incident.Â
Dr Shuey died in August, just days after completing the report, following a health battle linked to Agent Orange from the Vietnam War.
A now-adult Mr Meuleman is suing law firm Slater & Gordon, which represented him after the crash, for allegedly failing to act in his best interest when it negotiated an $80,000 compensation settlement with the Transport Accident Commission.Â
Slater & Gordon denies the claims and will defend the proceedings. The trial is scheduled for May, 2025.Â
In July, Mr and Mrs Andrews’ were forced to hand over their phone and credit card details from the day of the crash following a Supreme Court Order.Â
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest any wrongdoing by Mr or Mrs Andrews.
