A former ambulance officer on trial for murdering his wife 40 years ago was "frantic and upset" when he asked if a colleague was hiding her.

"I told him he was free to search the house if he wished," Edward Gudgeon testified in the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday.

"I wasn't hiding his wife."

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John Douglas Bowie, 72, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Roxlyn Bowie, who was 31 when she vanished from their Walgett home in northern NSW.

The Crown alleges he killed his wife on or about June 5, 1982 so he could have an unfettered relationship with another woman.

The Crown also alleges he may have disposed of her body by feeding her to pigs.

Gudgeon said he worked the 2pm to 10pm shift on June 5, while Bowie worked the day shift.

They had watched a football match on TV at the ambulance station in the afternoon.

After Bowie finished his shift, he came back to the station between 9pm and 10pm for five to 10 minutes.

"He had had a couple of beers too many," Gudgeon said.

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"I suggested he go home to sleep and he said he was going to the club."

Early next morning, Bowie came around to his place wanting to know if Gudgeon was hiding his wife.

"He was quite frantic and upset," he later told police.

"John informed me Roxlyn was missing and he asked me if she was inside my house or was I hiding her."

On his return to work, Bowie didn't appear to be coping well and Gudgeon later learned he asked for a transfer to Sydney on compassionate grounds.

He described Bowie as a devoted mother to her children

Former station officer Stanley Cornwell said she had been extremely close to her young daughter and son.

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"Her whole conversation was always focused on the children," he said.

As far as he knew, the only transport option to leave Walgett on a Saturday night was by private car.

Colleen McKenzie Trout said when she moved to Walgett she became friends with Bowie who was a "wonderful mother".

She once noticed she had red marks which looked like "finger marks" on the top of each arm.

On another occasion in 1980, she noticed her friend was wearing makeup and had bruising under her eye.

The trial continues before Justice Dina Yehia.

If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au.

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Concerned he incriminated himself in a woodchipper death, Gregory Lee Roser discussed blaming his medication for evidence inconsistencies, a court has heard.

Roser, 63, is on trial for murder after Bruce Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017.

The Crown alleges Sharon Graham asked her lovers Roser and Peter Koenig to kill her ex-partner Saunders, 54, and make it look like an accident in a bid to claim his $750,000 life insurance.

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Footage has been shown to a Brisbane Supreme Court jury of Mr Saunders' legs protruding from the chipper at the Goomboorian property near Gympie after clearing trees with Roser and Koenig.

Roser can be heard discussing with Graham differences in his statements among hours of police audio from listening devices at a Nambour residence.

Graham, 61, first suggests Roser approach his lawyer in a February 2018 conversation.

"You have actually incriminated yourself to be put on charges which is totally not right," Graham said in audio played to the jury on Thursday.

"So what's happening now you need to tell a lawyer 'I f—ed up with my statements… because the day of it happening I have a total block'.

"'Something has blocked my head. It's a wonder I was able to give a statement'."

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Reflecting on what he told police, Roser says there are inconsistencies about where he was when he claimed he first saw Saunders in the chipper.

Graham then reminds Roser that police could not find footprints where he claimed he stood in his bid to "save" Saunders from the chipper.

"That definitely caught you," she said.

Roser replies: "I f—ed up there.

"I am about 90 per cent I did not put one foot on the tailgate at all. I tried to pull him out while I was standing on the ground."

Graham then whispers: "If you put your foot up you are bracing yourself to pull stronger".

Graham adds: "In shock you would say a lot of things that were not right."

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Roser blamed the police for his inconsistencies.

"Because you know what they do they interrupt you all the time… and it f—s you up," he said.

"I had in my mind something and then he (police) started talking… that's what they kept doing to me."

The couple start looking up side effects for his pain medication.

Roser tells Graham that one causes "dizziness and light-headedness".

"You can't judge things… you can't judge distances, it throws you out," he said.

Graham tells Roser to approach his doctor and say the medication's serious side effects had led to confusing police statements.

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She then discovers they are reading the medication's withdrawal symptoms.

"Okay what is the next drug that you want to look up?" she asks.

Roser then says: "Here we go, this one… I know I have got that – disorientation."

"What's disorientation mean?" Graham asks.

"It means you can't make decisions, you get really confused about things… you don't know where you are and you can't judge things," Roser replies.

Graham then tells Roser: "The doctor has to put all of this in writing for you."

Graham – who has successfully applied for a separate trial – and Roser have pleaded not guilty to murder.

Roser's trial before Justice Martin Burns continues on Monday.

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A Sydney man has been charged with allegedly attempting to extort Optus customers in a scam text message using data that had been compromised in the recent cyberattack.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) this morning executed a search warrant at a home in Rockdale, in Sydney's south, where they arrested a 19-year-old man accused of running the scam.

He is not suspected of being responsible for the original Optus breach.

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Police will allege the man accessed the 10,200 stolen records that were posted online by the original hacker and then sent a scam text message to 93 customers.

The message demanded $2000 from the recipient, threatening to release the information further if the ransom was not paid.

None of the 93 customers who received the message are believed to have paid the ransom.

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Assistant Commissioner of Cyber Command at the AFP Justine Gough said the man allegedly tried to financially benefit from the stolen data that was dumped on an online forum.

"Last week, the AFP and our state and territory partners launched Operation Guardian to protect the most vulnerable customers affected by the Optus breach and we were absolutely clear that there would be no tolerance for the criminal use of this stolen data,'' Gough said.

"The warning is clear. Do not test the capability or dedication of law enforcement.

"The AFP, our state partners and industry are relentlessly scouring forums and other online sites for criminal activity linked to this breach.

"Just because there has been one arrest does not mean there won't be more."

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The AFP traced a bank account used in the scam message as part of their investigation.

The Sydney man has since been charged with two offences – using a telecommunication network with the intent to commit a serious offence and dealing with identity information – that carry a maximum penalty of 10 and seven years' imprisonment.

He is scheduled to appear in Sydney Central Local Court at a later date.

Arrest comes as confusion reigns over Optus communication

Two days ago, Optus confirmed at least 2.1 million personal identification numbers have been stolen as the telco announced an external review into the massive cyber attack.

Following investigations, Optus said of the 9.8 million customers whose data was hacked, it believes 7.7 million do not need to replace documents.

The 2.1 million personal ID details include 150,000 passport and 50,000 Medicare numbers.

Optus has been contacting customers affected by the hack with updates, but many reported feeling confused by multiple text messages from different numbers.

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Independent 'forensic' review ordered

Optus has commissioned an independent forensic review into the cyberattack against the telco, which saw thousands of customers' personal information leaked.

The review will be conducted by international services company Deloitte and will look into the cyberattack itself, Optus' security systems as well as its controls and processes.

"As part of the review, Deloitte will undertake a forensic assessment of the cyberattack and the circumstances surrounding it," Optus said in a statement released on Monday.

READ MORE: Optus announces external review into data breach

Optus said the review was recommended by CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin.

In the statement, Bayer Rosmarin said the company was determined to find out what went wrong.

"This review will help ensure we understand how it occurred and how we can prevent it from occurring again," she said.

It's unclear when the investigation will begin.