Australia's only convicted political assassin Phuong Ngo has told a Sydney inquiry he did not give evidence at his final trial because he'd just given up.
The former Fairfield councillor took the stand today at a review of his 2001 conviction for the murder of NSW MP John Newman, who was the Labor member for the south-western Sydney seat of Fairfield.
Mr Newman was gunned down at point blank range outside his home in September 1994.
After an inquest and three trials, Ngo, who was a member of the same right wing faction of the Labor Party as Mr Newman, was convicted of arranging his murder.
Two other men tried alongside Ngo as the shooter and the driver of the getaway car were acquitted by a NSW Supreme COurt jury.
Former District Court judge David Patten is reviewing the case against Ngo on the direction of Jim Spigelman, the Chief Justice of NSW.
Dressed in a dark suit and silver tie, Ngo smiled politely as he sat in the witness box, swearing an oath to be truthful.
He told Mr Patten he did not give evidence at his third trial because his mother had passed away in his native Vietnam midway through proceedings.
"You effectively gave up and simply accepted the advice of counsel that you should not give evidence?" asked Andrew Colefax, SC, counsel assisting Mr Patten.
"Yes, that's correct," Ngo replied.
The barrister continued: "Except for the death of your mother, it was your intent to give evidence at that third trial?"
"Very much so, Mr Colefax," Ngo said.
Ngo's failure to give evidence at the trial is one of the issues being considered by Mr Patten as potentially undermining the integrity of his conviction.
