Former long-serving Shoalhaven Mayor Greg Watson has recounted how Kiama MP Gareth Ward was caught out accessing council offices without authorisation during his early days as a councillor.

Watson, who spent five decades in local government before retiring last year, said it occurred early in Ward’s first term as a councillor at Shoalhaven City Council where, from the age of 22, he served between 2004-2012.

Watson said he noted the indiscretion in a formal mayoral minute, but he eventually dismissed it as “youthful exuberance”.

“He entered the council chambers after hours with one or two other Young Liberals … and somebody saw him suspiciously using the photocopiers, and at that point I had to do something about it and reported it,” Watson, who founded the Shoalhaven Independents Group, said.

“The general manager had his security access card checked out, and it was quite over the top. But I just put it down to youthful exuberance.”

Ward confirmed at the time he had been accessing Council's offices late at night and early in the morning but denied any wrongdoing.

The security concern led to all councillors being locked out of administration areas after hours.

“Up until that point we had a pretty loose arrangement, but Gareth went a bit overboard,” Watson said.

The pro-development former councillor said Ward had “made my life pretty miserable as Mayor”.

“He made spurious complaints against me to the ICAC (Independent Commission Against Corruption), and things like that,” Watson said.

“He undoubtedly was one of a few people who tore me down long term as Mayor. But I learnt not to bear any malice towards people.

“My inclination initially was to get him on board, but some of the others in my team wouldn’t have it. But you know the old saying about keeping your friends close and your enemies even closer.”

Ward, who became Shoalhaven Deputy Mayor after the 2008 local government election, confirmed the rivalry with Watson in his maiden speech to NSW Parliament on May 21, 2011.

“As the youngest councillor in our city’s history (in 2004), it was not long before I found the headlines, warring with the then Mayor, Greg Watson.

“If you learn more from your enemies than you do from your friends then Cr Watson has continued to be a veritable fountain of knowledge.

“In spite of our disagreements, I respect and commend his (then) 38 years of service to local government in our district and acknowledge his continued contribution to the Shoalhaven.”

Ward went on to scale the heights of NSW politics, becoming the Minister for Families, Communities and Disability Services after the 2019 election, only to fall in disgrace.

The 44-year-old is now a convicted rapist but announced late last week that he would appeal the jury’s decision.

Despite all of this, Watson offered a defence of the Kiama Independent MP in relation to the serious sex crimes he was convicted of last month.

“My view is that Gareth may not be guilty,” he said.

“I'm just going by some evidence that was given in the court case itself. You know, it was very much like it was consensual stuff.”

Watson, now retired from politics, said he and his wife, Robyn, followed the court proceedings closely.

“We went over the summary of the evidence that we were aware of. I thought he would have been found not guilty (of rape); maybe of indecent assault at most.”

For many, there were suspicious signs about Ward long before the nine-week trial.

Ward was at the centre of a September 2017 incident in New York, where he claimed to be the victim of an attempted extortion by two male masseurs.

He denied claims he had ordered a “special massage”.

A year later, Ward was accused by then Member for Gilmore and fellow Liberal, Ann Sudmalis, of “bullying, backstabbing and betrayal” against her.

Sudmalis accused Ward of branch-stacking the local Liberal branches.

The Kiama MP denied all the allegations against him.

When contacted by The Bugle for her reaction to Ward’s rape conviction, Sudmalis declined to comment.

In May 2021, Ward was stood down from the ministry and later suspended from Parliament after NSW Police confirmed he was under investigation over sexual violence allegations.

He was formally charged by police in March 2022 and resigned from the Liberal Party after the Premier at the time, Dominic Perrotet, told him that he would be expelled if he did not quit.

Ward ran as an independent and was re-elected by Kiama voters in 2023 by a slender margin after a swing of more than 11% against him.

Then came the bizarre 2024 incident in which Ward was caught on CCTV trying to access NSW Parliament at 4am wearing only a T-shirt, boxer shorts and socks.

He claimed he had locked himself out of his Potts Point apartment and was collecting a spare key. He denied he was intoxicated at the time.

Ward’s days of skating through controversies relatively unscathed ended on July 25 when he was found guilty of sexually abusing two young men.

Former Shoalhaven Mayor Greg Watson doesn’t dismiss Ward’s flaws, but he sees something else entirely.

“The electorate of Kiama have lost an extremely proactive and active local member,” he said.

“He had great political skills. There’s no doubt about that. He told his teachers (at Bomaderry High School) he was going to be the first albino Prime Minister of Australia.

“In my opinion, he had the ability to achieve the highest position in the land.”