Hidden Camera on Australian Navy Ship: Senate Scandal over HMAS Leeuwin

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents Hidden Camera on Australian Navy Ship: Senate Scandal over HMAS Leeuwin.

A hidden video recording device was discovered on the Australian naval vessel HMAS Leeuwin on 11 October 2026 – just three days before independent Senator Jacqui Lambie publicly raised the incident in the Senate. The ship was berthed in the port of Cairns, Queensland, at the time.

The Department of Defence in Canberra confirmed the find on Wednesday afternoon, after the editorial team at Guardian Australia followed up on Lambie's parliamentary comments. A spokesperson said only that police were investigating; the Department initially provided no further details on the location of the device.

What the Defence Department has confirmed

In an official statement, the Department acknowledged becoming aware of the discovery on 11 October. The case had been referred to the Joint Military Police Unit, and the Department was cooperating with civilian authorities. The ship remained in port while investigations continued, the agency said.

On 11 October 2026, Defence became aware that a video recording device had been located in the cabin of Royal Australian Navy ship HMAS Leeuwin, while alongside in Cairns, Queensland. The incident was referred to the Joint Military Police Unit and Defence is working with civilian authorities. Defence takes this incident extremely seriously and does not tolerate unacceptable behaviour in any form.

Conflict between the Department and the Senator

The Department's official account refers to a cabin on board. Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie painted a different picture to the Senate just hours earlier: she used parliamentary privilege to report that the recording device had been found in a shower used by female naval personnel. According to 7News, Lambie was alerted to the case by email from a former Navy member.

Several Australian media outlets picked up on the contradiction. The Nightly wrote that the Department was speaking of a cabin, while Lambie referred to the shower stall for the female crew. Until the Joint Military Police Unit completes its assessment of the facts, it remains unclear which of the two accounts is correct.

What is known so far – and what is not

The Department of Defence stressed that it was taking the incident "extremely seriously" and would not tolerate unacceptable behaviour in any form. No suspect has yet been named, nor has the precise location of the device been disclosed. How long the device had been on board, who may have placed it, and whether any recordings exist are all subject to the ongoing investigation.