Accused mass drug importer Liam Moody granted new freedom bid

Alleged ketamine importer Liam Moody will apply for bail a third time after a Supreme Court judge stood aside from the case.

Liam Moody, 37, was charged over a mass drug importation after an AFP raid in Lara on July 11.

An accused mass drug importer desperate for bail due to his depression has been granted a fresh bid for freedom over bias concerns relating to a judge.

Liam Moody, 37, is facing life in prison over allegations he was involved in the nation’s biggest ketamine haul.

On Friday it was revealed Supreme Court Justice John Champion, who was presiding over the bail application, had in 2014 been integral to an appeal which landed Mr Moody in prison.

The appeal followed outrage over a court letting Mr Moody walk free with nothing but a fine for violently assaulting a woman in public.

An application by Mr Moody for Justice Champion to recuse himself from the matter due to a potential perceived bias based on his knowledge of Mr Moody’s prior criminal conduct was granted and a third bail application ordered.

Justice Champion said he was confident he would have dealt with the matter with an “open mind” but understood why Mr Moody felt “unsettled” and wanted a different judge.

“It could have brought grievances on his part that he did not receive a fair outcome and that justice may not have been done,” Justice Champion said.

Buckets of ketamine seized by AFP, found in cement shipped from overseas.

The esky buried in the backyard of a Lara property.

“Such a perception can fester and bring the system of justice into disrepute.”

Justice Champion was the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2014 when Mr Moody walked from the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court with nothing more than a $1500 fine for a brutal nightclub assault on a young woman.

Mr Moody and the woman argued before he punched her in the face, causing her to collapse on the floor of CQ nightclub.

The victim lost her two front teeth and required extensive surgery and treatment.

Mr Moody pleaded guilty to recklessly causing injury and walked away with the fine and no conviction against his name.

The sentence sparked public uproar, with Justice Champion, then acting as the DPP, signing off on a County Court appeal of the sentence which resulted in Mr Moody being given a three month prison term and 12 month community corrections order.

The day took a dramatic turn when his father Allan Moody punched a TV reporter in the head outside court.

Allan Moody later pleaded guilty to unlawful assault and was fined $2000.

Mr Moody is currently facing six importation and possession charges after allegedly being caught in July unloading 80kg of ketamine from a truck at a Lara property.

Eskies with a further 80kg of the drug were found buried in the backyard.

Almost his entire family has been implicated in his alleged crimes.

Since entering custody, Mr Moody has developed major depressive disorder and his lawyers want him bailed to Harmony House in St Kilda because they don’t believe he is getting optimal care in prison.

His first bid for release was rejected in the magistrates’ court in August on the basis the charges against him were extremely serious and he was a potential flight risk.

His team sought a second appeal in the Supreme Court, which began a fortnight ago.

Mr Moody will remain in custody until his next bail application date.