Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.Jump to contentIndependentSwipe for next articleIndependent Bulletin homepageDownload our appAllNewsSportCultureLifestyleMaroosha MuzaffarTuesday 07 April 2026 07:29 BSTBen Roberts-Smith in Canberra in 2014 (Stefan Postles/Getty Images)Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia's most decorated living soldier, has been arrested at Sydney airport and is expected to be charged with five counts of war crime murders.The charges relate to the alleged murder of five unarmed Afghan nationals between 2009 and 2012 during his service in Afghanistan, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for each charge.The arrest follows a complex investigation by the Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Special Investigator, which has been ongoing since 2021.Roberts-Smith previously lost a high-profile defamation case against newspapers that published allegations of his war crimes, including kicking a detained man off a cliff and ordering executions.The High Court recently rejected his appeal against a civil court finding that he likely killed non-combatants unlawfully, exhausting his legal options in that defamation case.In fullAustralia’s most decorated soldier arrested over war crimes allegations in AfghanistanThank you for registeringPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in