But two years after the remarks, which attracted "likes" and comments from other members of the police force, Ms Leong said the force had not told her what disciplinary action the officers faced. Her complaint to the Human Rights Commission said NSW Police should be held liable for the conduct of the officers given its strict social media and professional conduct policies. Maurice Blackburn principal lawyer Giri Sivaraman said his client was seeking a "fulsome explanation" from NSW Police about the actions taken against individual officers and steps providing broader cultural change. "For Jenny this has never been about seeking retribution against individuals, but about seeking to ensure that NSW Police take responsibility for what has occurred," Mr Sivaraman said. Ms Leong said the saga had taken a "significant toll".

"I can't imagine how someone without the support and the resources of an MP would have been able to negotiate this situation," she said. A previous Facebook image of the then sergeant Jack Zaineddine who posted the comments about Ms Leong. Credit: Along with an apology from NSW Police, Ms Leong is seeking compensation, police files regarding her complaint, mandated penalties for social media abuse by police and a declaration the officers had acted in an unlawful, racist way. Section 18C makes it unlawful to act or speak publicly in a way that would be reasonably likely to insult, offend, humiliate or intimidate on the basis of race. The comments directed at Ms Leong came after her office posted a message on her Facebook decrying the use of police sniffer dogs.

The then sergeant Mr Zaineddine posted an offensive comment on this post and changed his profile picture the next day to the one used by Ms Leong, the complaint said. "Can't keep My eyes off you," one Facebook user wrote. "So sexy." Mr Zaineddine responded "Nawww tank u hunny...2 dolla sucky sucky lub u long time." Another user wrote: "Cheaper for cash?" Mr Zaineddine responded "ob course...Money cheap cheap".

Loading When another officer posted a meme that said "Your Daddy Shoulda Pulled Out!", Mr Zaineddine replied, "her daddy was a swamp monkey". "The comments suggest in language, style and context, that as an 'Asian' woman, Ms Leong speaks broken English, and is available to be bought for cheap sex," the complaint said. In April 2016, the state MP made a complaint to the Police Integrity Commission, which investigated 10 officers. Last December, Superintendent Michael Fitzgerald of the Kings Cross Local Area Command wrote to Ms Leong "to personally apologise" as the commander of the main two officers involved.

"Significant management action has been taken against those officers and other officers involved in those posts," Superintendent Fitzgerald said. A police spokeswoman said the commander's apology was made on behalf of NSW Police and that the Professional Standards Command made sustained findings against "some" of the 10 officers investigated "for bringing the NSW Police Force into disrepute via social media". "The matters were referred to each of the officers' commands for determination," the spokeswoman said. "As a result, the officer at the centre of the complaint, who had been suspended from duty for more than 12 months, additionally received internal disciplinary action included on his record of employment." But Mr Sivaraman, Ms Leong's lawyer, said his client was still trying to find out "exactly what action has been taken, against whom, and what steps the police force is taking to bring cultural change that would stop this happening again."

A document prepared by the integrity commission, since replaced by another body, showed Mr Zaineddine had been "suspended with pay until a determination is made with regards to this matter". The suspension was due to both the Leong matter and "another matter in which Zaineddine was a member of a Facebook group that posted pictures of mutilated bodies". After returning to the force, Mr Zaineddine became an acting inspector, according to minutes from a Kings Cross community safety meeting in September 2017. Inspector is a commissioned rank above sergeant and senior sergeant. NSW Police would not reveal his current rank and the Herald did not receive a response to questions addressed to Mr Zaineddine that were sent to police media.