Ethan Ericson claims to have left behind Comanchero Motorcycle Club after shotgun shooting at Hells Angels’ home
A young bikie has told an unconvinced judge he’s quit the Comancheros – but why did he shoot up the front of a Hells Angels member’s home?
Police & Courts
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A young Comanchero bikie who has pleaded guilty to firing a shotgun into the front of a house where a member of the Hells Angels was staying says he’s left the club.
Ethan Ericson, 26, of Andrews Farm, has pleaded guilty to firing the shotgun to scare the occupant of the home and illegally possessing the shotgun, which is yet to be recovered.
On Monday, Andy Ey, for Ericson, said told the District Court his client had been given permission to leave the club while in prison and “wanted to get on with his life”.
Ericson has “ACCA” – Always Comanchero, Comanchero Always – tattooed down the side of his face and has been photographed with senior members of the club in Adelaide.
He faces an uphill battle convincing District Court Judge Geraldine Davison he has left the club.
She questioned Mr Ey about how Ericson had left the club with only a phone call.
“In the absence of evidence I will not be sentencing him on the basis that he has left the club,” she said.
Judge Davison also quizzed Mr Ey on whether Ericson had technically left the Comanchero but had instead joined their prison chapter.
“I am aware from dealing with similar cases that some gangs have special groups inside prison – known in one case as the Big House Crew – and that is more of a transfer,” she said.
Mr Ey said he did not have instructions on whether that was the case but was instructed his client had left the gang and did not want to make prison a “revolving door” in his life.
Ericson was released from prison on parole in late 2021 after serving more than two years of a three-year sentence for aggravated robbery. That sentence expired in January this year.
The court heard on that occasion he had threatened a worker at a service station with a syringe.
Mr Ey said his client had joined the Comanchero while serving that sentence and had continued the association upon release.
On June 23, 2022, Ericson fired a shotgun into the front of an Ingle Farm property.
He was arrested on July 12 and has been in custody since then.
The court heard Ericson had provided no instructions to his lawyer as to why he had committed the crime.
At the time police said the shooting was part of escalating tensions between the Comanchero and Hells Angels – the two most powerful bikie gangs in South Australia.
Ericson will appear in court again next week where he is expected to give evidence.
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