Five years after being charged, a former Queensland mayor has pleaded guilty to offences that arose from a corruption watchdog investigation.
Luke Smith was the Logan City Council mayor when he was charged in 2018 following a Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) probe.
Smith, 52, was accused of agreeing to receive a powerboat from a political donor between July 2016 and September 2016 to progress the development approval of a hotel.
The former councillor – whose full name is Timothy Luke Smith – had been set to face trial in Brisbane District Court this week, with his matter listed for mention on Tuesday.
However in court on Tuesday he pleaded guilty to receipt of a secret commission by an agent and failing in his obligation to update his register of interests.
Smith will also be sentenced on Thursday for the charge of misconduct in relation to public office.
A committal hearing first heard in January 2020 a proposed 15-storey hotel at Springwood would have exceeded the Logan council’s building height restriction.
It is alleged Smith obtained a powerboat from a former director of SKL Cables, seven months after the company submitted a development application to council.
The misconduct charge relates to a CCC allegation that Smith interfered in the recruitment process of another person between June and July 2017.
Smith was charged with failing in his obligation to update his register of interests between August 2016 and September 2017.
The entire Logan council was sacked in May 2018 following a CCC investigation.
But separate fraud charges laid against Smith and seven former councillors were dropped in April 2021 after another committal hearing in 2020.
The charges related to the sacking of former Logan council chief executive Sharon Kelsey.
Smith remains on bail ahead of Thursday’s sentencing.
© AAP 2023
