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Sunday, August 7, 2011

AUSTRALIA - Bikies to plead not guilty over Motorplex brawl

OFF THE WIRE
Lawyers for a group of Coffin Cheaters bikies and associates accused of lying to the Corruption and Crime Commission over a brawl with rival gxxg the Finks have told a Perth court they will plead not guilty to the charges.

Nine Coffin Cheaters members and associates face a total of 31 charges, with six of the men - Paul Pellegrino Mule, Benjamin John Ortin, Aaron Dinesh James John, David John Reid, Todd Carl Lange and Danny Sydney Makin - making their first appearances in Perth Magistrate's Court today.

The remaining three men appeared in court last week. Mr Lange and Mr Makin were not at court, but had their lawyers appear on their behalf.

The accused men arrived at court together with a group of supporters amid a visible police presence. Earlier this week Coffin Cheater-turned-Fink Troy Mercanti was released from jail, sparking fears of further bikie hostilities.

Lawyer Michelle Harries, for the CCC, said the watchdog needed more time to consider whether to apply for a joint trial for all the accused men and whether to ask for the cases to be sent to a higher court.

Ms Harries said that although not all of the charges were directly related, they all arose from the same incident, a brawl between members of the Coffin Cheaters and Finks at Perth Motorplex in October last year.

Many of the lawyers representing the accused men today strenuously opposed an application for a joint trial, with one saying the alleged criminality involved the individual hearings before the CCC, not the motorplex incident.

Mr John's lawyer Shash Nigam said the cases differed in that some of the accused denied witnessing the fight, while others claimed the first they knew about it was when it was reported in the media.

Mr Ortin's lawyer Seamus Rafferty said it was "staggering" that the prosecution had not made up its mind on how to proceed. He said his client had contempt charges against him dropped in the Supreme Court involving the same incident after the prosecution was asked to provide CCTV footage.

The CCC hearings were held after police applied to use exceptional powers during their ongoing investigations.

The maximum penalty for giving misleading evidence to the CCC is five years' jail and a $100,000 fine.

Of the 31 charges against the nine men, 29 relate to lying to the CCC while two of the accused men have also been charged with disclosing a restricted matter.

All of the men will reappear in court on August 26.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/9981761/bikies-to-plead-not-guilty-over-motorplex-brawl/