| CFMEU officials John Setka and Shaun Reardon charged with blackmail by royal commission taskforce |
Two senior Victorian CFMEU officials have been charged with blackmail after an investigation by a joint police taskforce examining matters arising from the Royal Commission into Trade Union Corruption.
Taskforce Heracles detectives charged a 51-year-old man from West Footscray and a 47-year-old man from Ocean Grove.
The CFMEU confirmed that the two men charged were John Setka, who heads the union in Victoria, and his deputy Shaun Reardon.
In a statement, the union said both men would be pleading not guilty.
Dave Noonan, the national secretary of the union's construction division, criticised the police operation, saying the arrests were "designed to create maximum political damage to the union with little regard for their families".
"The arrests were conducted in front of both families and reek of overkill," he said.
The Taskforce consists of the Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police investigators, and was established to investigate referrals and other matters arising from the commission.
Victoria Police said a "lengthy investigation" had led to the charges.
Both men have been granted bail and will appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
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