Christopher Glasl claimed he helped capture Port Arthur gunman Martin Bryant. Cops say wasn’t there

A veteran of an elite police unit has been accused of making up stories about his service, including being sent to Port Arthur on the day of the 1996 massacre.

Christopher Glasl has written about his four years in Victoria’s feared Special Operations Group (SOG), sometimes known as the ‘Sons of God’ or ‘Men in Black’.

Special Operations Group: The Inside Story of the Most Feared and Fearsome Unit in Australian Policing was described as a behind-the-scenes look at the tactical squad.

But 12 days after the memoir hit the shelves, publisher Hachette has withdrawn it from sale after learning ‘some of the content of this book is inaccurate’.

Victoria Police has said he was not at Port Arthur on the day of the massacre – and claims he was not even in Tasmania.

Formed in 1977 to counter terrorism, the SOG is called upon to end sieges, rescue hostages and arrest armed offenders in the most dangerous of circumstances.

‘The Special Operations Group are ultra-fit, highly trained officers brought in to do the jobs other police cannot,’ publicity material for Glasl’s book states. 

‘Since he was a nineteen-year-old recruit with Victoria Police, Chris Glasl aspired to join this elite group – the SOG were untouchable, indestructible and bonded so closely together they were a brotherhood like no other.

‘Special Operations Group is Chris’s story of his life in the SOG – where solidarity, camaraderie and loyalties were undermined by bullying, bastardisation, drug use, lies and betrayal. 

‘It is a raw, behind-the-scenes look at what went on at the SOG, and a gripping account of major jobs he attended.’

Among the tales Glasl tells is of being sent to Port Arthur on April 28, 1996 after Martin Bryant shot dead 35 tourists and staff at the Tasmanian historic site.

Glasl claims he was on call that day when the SOG was asked to support local police who did not have the appropriate experience or training.

‘The world’s worst mass murder had just occurred in Tasmania,’ he writes. ‘Our phones rang and we were told to hike it to Essendon Airport for deployment there. 

‘Never before had an interstate police department requested our assistance, anywhere in Australia. This situation was different. 

‘We rendezvoused at Essendon Airport at the Police Air Wing hangar, boarded a fixed-wing aircraft that was prepped and ready to go, and flew to Tasmania into the carnage.’ 

Glasl writes of how an SOG sniper had a chance to kill Bryant when he was holed up in the Seascape Cottages after the massacre but was not allowed to take the shot.

Glasl claimed in his book Special Operations Group he was present when gunman Martin Bryant was arrested at Seascape Cottages (above) but Victoria Police say he wasn’t

‘Bryant had an excellent vantage point from the second storey of the main residence. A walk-up assault on the premises would leave us exposed and vulnerable,’ he writes.

‘We began thinking of other options, a tank or armoured ­vehicle, but nothing was available. One of the team leaders suggested a bulldozer which could act as a giant shield.’

Glasl writes that when a SOG sniper known as Sierra had an opportunity to shoot Bryant, the Tasmanian police commissioner would not allow it.

Instead, the SOG team had to wait until dawn when the main cottage was on fire and Bryant ran from the building with his clothes burning. 

‘It was a totally surreal scene, flames and smoke billowing from the building, while the night sky was replaced by the rising sun, birds began singing and a picturesque background appeared of the ocean and the forest,’ Glasl writes. 

Publisher Hachette has withdrawn Glasl’s book Special Operations Group from sale

The problem with Glasl’s vivid account is that he was not at Port Arthur that day, according to Victoria Police. 

A Hachette spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia on Monday afternoon it had pulled Glasl’s book from sale pending further investigation.

‘It has come to our attention that some of the content of this book is inaccurate,’ the spokeswoman said. 

‘We have taken the decision to withdraw this book from sale immediately while we undertake further review.’ 

Just minutes earlier, a spokeswoman for Victoria Police warned media about publishing stories which promoted the book.

‘Victoria Police is aware of a newly published book on the Special Operations Group (SOG) written by a former member,’ the spokeswoman said.

‘We have concerns about the accuracy of the book including some of the author’s claims about jobs he attended.

‘Of particular concern is chapter 18 which focuses on the author’s claimed involvement in the resolution of the Port Arthur massacre.

‘To confirm, the former member was not part of the SOG deployment to Port Arthur nor was he even in Tasmania at the time.

‘If anyone is planning to promote this book or interview the author, please feel free to contact us beforehand to confirm the validity of the jobs he attended and associated claims.’ 

Publicity material for the book states Glasl took drugs while serving with the SOG ‘to switch off the adrenalin, to sleep at night, to get through his days’. 

‘And those days involved fatal shootings, a triple murder, a 100-million-dollar drug bust and the Port Arthur massacre, to name just a few.’

Glasl writes in an afterword to his book: ‘I have tried to be as honest and open in this book as my memory affords. Is it all true? I will say almost all of it is true.

‘Legally, I have to cover myself in the possibility of any ramifications. The reader can make their minds up if I have written the truth. I am sure they know.’