Former Mongols bikie Shane Bowden caught in Qld border breach after entering from Victoria
A COVID-positive man nabbed by police after entering Queensland from Victoria has been revealed as notorious bikie Shane Bowden, who shot another bikie during the infamous Ballroom Blitz brawl on the Gold Coast.
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A man apprehended by police flying into Queensland after being diagnosed with coronavirus can be revealed as prominent outlaw motorcycle gang member Shane Bowden.
Bowden, a former member of the Mongols who was kicked out of the club, was shot in the driveway of a Melbourne home in early July.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk provides COVID-19 update from Cairns
Outlaw bikie Shane Bowden kicked out of the Mongols
The shooting happened two weeks after he was released from prison.
He was apprehended by police yesterday after flying into Brisbane on flight JQ560 from Melbourne.
He was diagnosed with coronavirus before he fled Victoria and his trip has forced 84 of his fellow passengers into quarantine.
In July Bowden took to social media where he wrote about his excitement at the prospect of returning to Queensland.
“Can’t (wait) to get back there as (soon) as I can get back X (sic) the border,” he wrote as a response to one of his Instagram followers, who made reference to a picture shared online.
The woman’s comment said “Love the pic, looks like the Goldie back in the day.”
A comment from another user, thought to be Bowden’s teenage son was posted early this morning.
The comment suggests Bowden is currently in hospital.
“Dad I sent you something to the hospital I hope you get it. Wish they would allow visitors,” the teen wrote.
The former Mongol was once a senior member of the Finks outlaw motorcycle club and is best known for being part of the club’s “Terror Team”.
Bowden shot Melbourne bikie Christopher Wayne Hudson during the so called “Ballroom Blitz” at the Royal Pines Resort in 2006.
He spent seven years in prison for his role in the brawl.
The ballroom blitz is described as Australia’s most violent bikie brawl, with three men shot and another three left with stab wounds.
Bikies from the Hells Angels were sitting ringside at a kickboxing tournament at the Gold Coast resort when Finks rivals - including Bowden and terror team member Nick “The Knife” Forbes arrived.
The fight broke out when Forbes threw a punch at Hells Angel Hudson - another infamous bikie.
It started a massive brawl that threw the event into chaos, as bikies threw punches, chairs and glasses and brought out weapons.
Footage played during the 2008 court case showed Fink Forbes and Hells Angel Hudson fighting when Bowden pulled out a gun and shot Hudson in the face and back.
Forbes held an injured Hudson against the kickboxing ring while Bowden continued to punch him.
The fight was believed to have been in response to Hudson’s defection from the Finks to the Hells Angels.
Bowden was released from Loddon Prison, in central Victoria, in June this year.
A contingent of bikies met him at the gates and Bowden walked from jail straight into a stretch limousine.
His latest stretch behind bars was over a violent home invasion in 2015 in Melbourne’s South Yarra.
Bowden wore night-vision goggles and dressed in camouflage gear while brandishing a knife.
A Victorian court heard he kicked one victim in the head and stomped on his face before being handed $700.
He pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary and two charges of recklessly causing injury and theft.
The County Court sentenced him to three years jail on the aggravated burglary charge.
It is understood Bowden is currently in a Gold Coast quarantine hotel.
On his Twitter, Health Minister Steven Miles said Queensland Police “intercepted” a Victorian man trying to enter Queensland.
The man had tested positive to COVID-19 “some time ago”, he said.
Mr Miles said the COVID positive man was wanted by Victorian authorities.
“He arrived in Brisbane at 9.19am yesterday on flight JQ560 from Melbourne,” he said in a tweet.
“QPS are investigating and he’s in hotel quarantine.”
Victoria’s chief medical officer Professor Brett Sutton said he was aware of media reports about Bowden entering Queensland with coronavirus but he had no official information.
He said there were penalties in place for people who flouted isolation or quarantine requirements.
“I would say for confirmed cases and their close contacts, there are penalties that apply to each and every one of those individuals if they break the requirements of their isolation or quarantine, very substantial penalties that can apply to them,” he said.
Mr Sutton said the idea of a flight “watch list” to ensure COVID-19 positive cases did not board planes was not appropriate.
“I’m not sure that that’s - that’s the appropriate mechanism to manage this risk. I think it’s incumbent on the individual to do the right thing. If there’s any information we need to share between jurisdictions, we do that simultaneously,” he said.