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Police have slammed claims in Ian Wishart's book which say the evidence line followed into the murder of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope was wrong.
In a statement released today, Police Detective Superintendent Peter Read outlined three claims in Mr Wishart's book Elementary which they disagree with after comparing it with the original investigation file.
However, police do agree with Mr Wishart's book that Scott Watson murdered Ben and Olivia.
Mr Read rejected his claim that Scott Watson and the unknown accomplice removed Ben and Olivia's bodies on 1 January 1998 in Shakespeare Bay.
Police also disagreed that Mr Watson painted his boat while sailing near the head of Endeavour Inlet on the new year's day while he had another unknown person on-board and that evidence of the Erie Bay sighting was false.
"While we understand the enduring public interest in this case. Police are not in a position to publicly re-litigate evidence which has been gathered during a historic investigation, including evidence which was put before the court."
Mr Read said each claim had been considered and the file examined before making the findings public. It was not unusual for witness sightings to contradict each other, he said. But police and prosecutors made decisions on who gave evidence based on corroborated accounts that were supported by the known facts.
