Alleged NSW Comanchero bikie Kyle Shepherd faces SA court charged with money laundering

An alleged Comanchero bikie who was extradited to Adelaide on money laundering charges has asked a court to release him, but a legal complication halted his bail bid.

An alleged Comanchero bikie who was extradited from New South Wales to South Australia and charged with allegedly laundering more than $1m has had his bid for bail dramatically halted after a magistrate declared she had a conflict of interest with him.

Following his arrest in NSW on Tuesday, Comanchero bikie Kyle Shepherd was on Wednesday evening flown to Adelaide to face 29 charges of money laundering.

Alleged senior Comanchero bikie, Kyle Shepherd was flown to South Australia to face charges that he laundered more than $1 million tied to cannabis trafficking after raids in Lake Macquarie. Picture: 7NEWS

The Newcastle man – who currently works for the Lake Macquarie Council – faced the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday afternoon, where his lawyer, David Edwardson KC asked Magistrate Louise Kleinig to release him on bail to his NSW home.

“The charges date back to 2022, so it’s been some two years since the alleged offending before he was ultimately arrested and extradited,” Mr Edwardson said.

“The prosecution are asserting, in the facts of charge, that the person whose alleged to have sent money from the post office in New South Wales resembles the accused.

“Resembling – looks like – is not identification. There is no identification of the accused at all.

“There is also a real question of jurisdiction, that is, why wasn’t he charged in New South Wales, if the source of the money was that it came from New South Wales?”

Mr Edwardson told Ms Kleinig that, if his client were to remain in custody, it would be a significant period of time before his case was heard in a trial, given the fact trials are currently being scheduled for 2026.

Mr Shepherd, 34, was dramatically arrested by Raptor Squad police during raids at two Garden Suburb properties on Tuesday morning.

The court on Thursday afternoon heard Mr Shepherd’s wife, as well as another man, were willing to provide guarantors to the court to secure his release on bail.

Mr Edwardson said the man was willing to sacrifice $500,000 – the equity in his home – and Mr Shepherd himself could also provide a $30,000 surety.

“He has a partner and two children – aged 12 and three – he is required to pay childcare, he has rent to pay,” Mr Edwardson said.

However, before prosecutors had an opportunity to disclose their position on bail, Ms Kleinig told the court she would need to step away from the bench to consider a potential conflict of interest in the matter.

Following a brief adjournment, she returned, and said she would be unable to hear the rest of the case due to that conflict.

Mr Shepherd’s application will be heard again, before a different magistrate, on Friday morning, and he was remanded in custody for the night.