Disgraced former NSW Liberal MP Daryl Maguire has been charged with giving false and misleading evidence to a corruption inquiry involving a Sydney council.
The news comes days before the state's corruption watchdog releases its findings into a major inquiry into the former Wagga Wagga MP and ex-premier Gladys Berejiklian, who were in a secret relationship.
The Independent Commission Against Corruption said Maguire, 64, was charged on June 2 with one count of giving false and misleading evidence into an inquiry into the conduct of councillors of the former Canterbury City Council and others.
In its report released in March 2021, ICAC recommended Maguire face criminal charges over his testimony given during Operation Dasha, which investigated whether former councillors dishonestly exercised their official functions over planning proposals and applications
It made findings of serious corrupt conduct against former councillors and recommended the Director of Public Prosecutions be consulted regarding charges against six people.
Maguire appeared in a Sydney court in February, accused of a criminal conspiracy over an alleged cash-for-visas scheme that was the subject of the separate ICAC investigation Operation Keppel.
He has not yet entered a plea and will face Sydney's Downing Court on Tuesday over the charge.
Maguire resigned from NSW parliament in 2018 after the Keppel inquiry began, which later exposed his secret “close personal relationship” with Ms Berejiklian.
There is no suggestion Ms Berejiklian was involved in any offence and she has denied any wrongdoing.
The inquiry into Ms Berejiklian began after ICAC launched the investigation into Maguire to discover if he used his role as an MP to gain a financial benefit and whether the premier breached the public trust during their five-year secret relationship.
The long-delayed report will be delivered on Thursday, more than a year and a half after Ms Berejiklian quit a premier to wait for the findings.
