Pair feared for safety
The whistleblowers who raised concerns about public funding of the America’s Cup say they feared for their safety after Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton labelled them “spies” and suggested they had leaked information to other teams.
Tom Mayo and Grant Calder, the principals of event company Mayo & Calder, said they raised their concerns with the Government after attempting to raise issues about health and safety and the spending of taxpayer money internally at America’s Cup Event (ACE), a largely taxpayer-funded company run within Team New Zealand’s base.
But they claim they were ignored, including by ACE’S chair, Tina Symmans, who they believe was unable to stand up to Dalton, despite being at least notionally in charge of him.
When Dalton discovered their involvement he quickly went public, claiming that Team New Zealand had discovered and expelled “spies” and “informants” who he suggested had been leaking information about the team.
The pair say they feared for their safety as they had their home addresses posted on popular sailing blogs, where they were cast as “t r ai t ors” f ol l owing Dalton’s claims.
“I had letters through my letterbox, and my wife’s at home with a newborn baby, and we’re s**tscared of what happens next,” Mayo said.
There is no suggestion that anyone from ACE or Team New Zealand were responsible for posting the pair’s details online.
ACE responded to Mayo and Calder’s comments by claiming they had concerns about the company’s performance.
ACE is suing Mayo & Calder, claiming the company is responsible for a payment inadvertently made to a Hungarian scammer for around $2.8 million.
A Government-commissioned report by forensic accountants Beattie Varley concluded that they had seen no evidence that event money had been misapplied, but sharply criticised the governance of ACE and Team New Zealand.