Questions swirl around SAS Afghan 'war crime' evidence

A report on an alleged SAS war crime claimed an Afghan was seen evading Australian soldiers before his death.

But where this nugget of information came from remains unclear, a murder-accused SAS soldier's court hearing has been told.

Special Air Service Regiment trooper Oliver Jordan Schulz was charged with a war crime after footage emerged of him firing three shots at Dad Mohammad.

The 43-year-old has been accused of unlawfully killing the local man as he lay on his back in a wheat field.

However, an assessment done by one of Schulz's superior officers claimed Mr Mohammad had been seen "attempting to evade" the troop through dense bush that ran along an aqueduct.

The superior officer, who cannot be legally named, gave evidence at a committal hearing at Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Monday.

He said Schulz himself did not describe Mr Mohammad as being evasive when interviewed on June 19, 2012.

Instead, the witness said this detail of the local man's movements before being shot came from higher up in the chain of command from a senior official.

"If that's a change that he made, it's not one he made based on any direct information from Mr Schulz?" asked crown prosecutor Sean Flood SC.

"Correct," the witness replied.

The officer told the court he initially conducted the assessment entirely from written mission reports, believing them to be accurate.

However, his senior officer expressed concerns about whether details garnered from these reports justified the force used on Mr Mohammad.

Schulz and another soldier were then called to give interviews.

The officer conducting the interviews did not provide warnings that any answers could be used against them and did not keep the hand-written notes he had taken down at the time.

Instead, dot points summarising what Schulz said were included in the assessment.

Footage from a helmet-mounted camera shows Schulz and his patrol coming into Dehjawze by helicopter before disembarking, running past a compound and across aqueducts, before coming across Mr Mohammad.

Military documents show they had been sent to Dehjawze for "Objective Young Akira" to capture alleged insurgent leader Mullah Payend.

A report summarising Mr Mohammed's movements claimed he was seen "tactically manoeuvring" and displayed "hostile intent" before being killed.

Soldiers claim they found a radio on the dead Afghan's body and a mobile phone he had dropped connected with Young Akira.

The hearing continues on Tuesday.

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