Former bikie Anthony Wells wins battle against AGD’s attempt to keep him locked up after 20 breaches

A former bikie will not be kept behind bars, despite lying to Corrections officers about having gastro – even though he’d been to 13 different places that day, a court has heard.

A former bikie who once bashed a kidnapped man brought to his home will not be kept in prison despite breaching an extended supervision order 20 times in only a few months – including stripping in front of Corrections officers and lying about being ill.

Anthony Wells, a former Mongols and Finks bikie, is currently in prison after being arrested in April for the multiple breaches, but is scheduled to be released in a matter of weeks.

Last week the Attorney-General’s Department brought an application to extend Wells’ time in custody at the recommendation of the Parole Board.

The order can only be made to protect the community, not to punish Wells for previous offending.

Supreme Court Justice Adam Kimber heard that Parole Board president Frances Nelson QC had said Wells lacked insight into his previous offending and drug taking.

A second application was to allow Wells to be released into the community on another extended supervision order with even stricter curfew conditions.

The court heard that Wells had been on three extended supervision orders since being sentenced in May 2016 for bashing a man who had been kidnapped and brought to his home.

In total Wells has spent the past five years and seven months either in custody or subject to supervision to the community.

A representative for the Crown Solicitor’s office told the court Wells had breached his supervision several times in July 2021 and had been taken into custody.

In October he was released and in November tested positive to banned drugs.

“He reported for supervision intoxicated and incoherent,” she said.

“He is reported to have stripped naked in front of officers and behaved in a difficult manner while there was an attempt to take urine from him,” she said.

“The next day he admitted to his Corrections officer that he had taken two valium to the appointment.”

In November Wells was released again and breached his curfew and failed to report to corrections.

On December 29 he told Corrections workers he had gastro – but a check of his electronic monitoring showed Wells had been at 13 different locations that day.

Justice Kimber asked whether Wells had actually offended in his time in the community and was told there were no pending charges.

Wells, appearing in court via video link for prison, threw his hands up in the air, thanking Justice Kimber for asking the question.

Domenic Agresta, for Wells, said his client had been successfully participating in a drug rehabilitation program but had come unstuck when Covid kept him from participating.

“This man is not seeking to hide when he is offending,” he said.

“He wants to continue with the program. But for Covid there is no reason to think he would not have continued on the program.”

Justice Kimber dismissed the application to keep Wells behind bars, but made his extended supervision conditions more strict.