A then-Australian army captain will never forget the moment subordinate Ben Roberts-Smith threatened to “smash” his face in, he told the Federal Court. 

“I was in shock,” the witness codenamed Person 69 told the Federal Court on Monday. 

The now-lieutenant colonel had been invited to The Fat Ladies Arms for the first time, a drinking hole in Afghanistan frequented by SAS soldiers.

One metre away was Lance Corporal Roberts-Smith in conversation with other troopers about a high-intensity Chora Valley operation in 2006. 

He recalled words the effect: “I was watching the expression of his face as bullets crept closer,” and how the enemy had been “all around us”.

Person 69 then turned his head towards Mr Roberts-Smith who clocked eyes and said: “What the f*** are you doing here, I should smash your face in,” he said. 

“I’ve never been spoken (to) in that way by a subordinate. I didn’t know what to say.”

Two superiors then told Mr Roberts-Smith to “pull your f***ing head in,” and shortly after he decided it was “better that I leave” and never returned. 

Person 69 said it was one of three times he had been threatened by his “own team”, and could recount precisely what year, and what was said as it had “profoundly” impacted him. 

Earlier, Person 69 said he came into a room where a soldier was “clearly upset and emotional”.

He said the trooper described seeing an unarmed Afghan male walk below his outlook post before Mr Roberts-Smith “started to yell and abuse me” for not firing at the man. 

Later Mr Roberts-Smith returned with the late Sergeant Matt Locke and said “we’ve killed him”, the soldier adding there was nothing brought back and he “didn’t know what to do”.

“I interjected into the conversation and said, you should probably tell someone about that,” Person 69 said. 

“There’s no point,” the soldier said before explaining his “weapon stoppage” to his comrade. 

Person 69 said he had never worked with the Australian SAS before, and was “shocked they were not a collegiate team”.

“I had worked with other special forces, they seemed to help people who were making mistakes.

“I couldn’t believe a junior trooper would get abused …  rather than being supported.”

Mr Roberts-Smith is suing The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times for defamation over reports that he committed war crimes and murders in Afghanistan between 2006 and 2012.

The Victoria Cross recipient vehemently denies those allegations and accusations of bullying.

Person One recently testified that he formally reported Mr Roberts-Smith for “ruthless and unwavering” bullying.

He admitted making a serious mistake by not bringing machine oil for his Minimi weapon, causing “stoppages” during an Afghanistan mission. 

Mr Roberts-Smith’s barrister Bruce McClintock SC asked the then-captain whether a failure to bring gun oil could be fairly described as “basic and elementary”.

“Everyone makes mistakes”, Person 69 said, before admitting lives had been put at risk by the error. 

He also dismissed the assertion it was “ludicrous” the then-lance corporal had abused a captain. 

Person 69 said “it absolutely did” happen but he didn’t report it because the situation was resolved by the other personnel. 

It follows evidence from a former SAS patrol commander – Person 21 – who backed up the alleged bullying claims by Person One.

After a failed mission in June 2006, Person One alleges Mr Roberts-Smith said if his performance didn’t improve, he would get “a bullet in the back of (his) head”.

Mr Roberts-Smith’s lawyers contended that Person One was lying and fairly subject to professional criticism for his failings as a soldier.

The trial continues. 

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