The Zumba instructor made the claim in a police interview after being shown photos of authorities excavating his front yard.

The man, known in court documents only as “MM” and not facing any charges himself, has been named as part of an extortion case.

A magistrate upheld orders proposed by the prosecution relating to the case in a Cairns court to keep the case suppressed.

Against the backdrop of her party’s surging popularity, the One Nation leader threw her support behind the accused war criminal at a local park in Brisbane’s south-west and also criticised media coverage of his arrest.