Joshua Miller fronts court after blackmailing Wodonga men
A senior Finks’ bikie threatened to cave in the heads of two Wodonga men with bats in a standover tactic aimed at extorting $5000.
Albury Wodonga
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A senior Finks’ bikie threatened to cave in the heads of two Wodonga men with bats in a standover tactic aimed at extorting $5000.
Joshua John Miller pleaded guilty in County Court to charges of blackmail, possession of methylamphetamine and receiving stolen goods and will be sentenced on Friday.
The 31-year-old was the Finks Wodonga chapter Sergeant-at-Arms when he threatened Michael Brown and William Pollard to tell him the name of the person who had been talking to them about him.
According to court documents, a work colleague of Mr Brown informed him a bikie by the name of Josh believed Mr Brown and Mr Pollard were selling drugs from their Wodonga home.
Mr Brown believed it was a misunderstanding and thought he could clear things up if he spoke to Miller.
He tried to explain when he met Miller on a footpath while walking his dog on May 19, 2023 but the latter demanded to know the name of the person who had been talking about him.
Miller said “I’ll f-----g cave your head in and shoot your dog right now unless you give me a name, but I wouldn’t do that. I’m not a bully.”
When Mr Brown said he’d try and find out the information, Miller replied “You’ve got 24 hours to come up with a name or give us $5000, otherwise I’ll run through your place and bash your heads in and steal all your stuff.”
About two weeks later, Mr Pollard drove to the Birralee Plaza in West Wodonga, withdrew $700 and handed the money to Miller’s alleged co-offender.
When a fearful Mr Brown and Mr Pollard decided to stay with friends, their house was burgled by two men, including the Finks Wodonga chapter president Jarrad Searby, and a number of items were stolen.
Searby was sentenced in May last year to three years and six months, with a non-parole of two years and two months.
Miller’s alleged co-offender is listed for plea on Thursday.
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