An explosive investigation by 60 Minutes, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age has revealed a string of claims about one of Australia’s most decorated soldiers, Ben Roberts-Smith.

It’s alleged the Victoria Cross recipient had evidence of misconduct by Australian SAS troops stored on a USB, buried inside a pink plastic children’s lunchbox in his garden.

Images published in the report, purportedly from the USB, appear to show SAS soldiers engaged in inappropriate acts, including a soldier dressed as a Ku Klux Klan member.

Sydney Morning Herald journalist and co-author of the article, Chris Masters, said the information was bound to come to light eventually.

“There are so may soldiers who have come back with bad memories, and they have had trouble living with some of the things they saw, I’m sure it would have come out over time,” he said.

“What we have heard about what went on was not just morally wrong, but it was strategically wrong as well.

“What happened out there in those villages in Afghanistan, the people that we were supposed to be protecting from the Taliban, ended up hating us and wanting to join the Taliban.

“Things clearly got out of control.”

The allegations are unproven and Ben Roberts-Smith has strongly denied any wrongdoing, labelling the allegations “baseless”.

The Seven Network, which employs Ben Roberts-Smith as its Queensland Managing Director, has issued a statement saying the allegations “do not appear to be supported by evidence”.

Ben Roberts-Smith is suing Nine for defamation over a series of articles in Nine mastheads, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, detailing war crime allegations against him.

Click play to hear the full interview. 

(Photo: Indigo/Getty Images)