Former federal police commander Ramzi Jabbour will replace Graham Ashton, who was appointed chief commissioner of Victoria police in July

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

A senior officer criticised over the Mohamed Haneef scandal has been appointed deputy commissioner of the Australian federal police.

Ramzi Jabbour, who has been with the AFP for 24 years, will replace Graham Ashton, who was appointed chief commissioner of Victoria police in July.

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The federal justice minister, Michael Keenan, said Jabbour had provided distinguished service in community policing, tackling serious organised crime and counter-terrorism.

“His appointment will ensure the AFP continues to successfully address complex crime and security issues, and develop and maintain strategic national and international partnerships,” he said.

A 2008 report by retired New South Wales judge John Clarke found Indian-born doctor Mohamed Haneef was wrongly charged and detained for a month in Brisbane in 2007, over suspected links to terrorist acts in the UK.

Clarke found the investigation into Haneef had been coloured by the perception he was fleeing Australia when he tried to fly to Bangalore, India, on 2 July 2007 to seek support from his family.

The then AFP commander Jabbour had become suspicious about Haneef and “lost objectivity”, Clarke said.

Though a dedicated and capable officer, Jabbour had been “unable to see that the evidence he regarded as highly incriminating in fact amounted to very little”.