Judge says girlfriend of bikie boss a victim of ‘manipulation’
A mother of three who trafficked ice and guns for her violent Rebels bikie boss boyfriend may not have to serve a long jail term after a judge ruled she was a victim of “appalling manipulation” and only “did as she was bid”.
Police & Courts
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The girlfriend of a violent bikie boss who trafficked drugs and guns could be spared a long jail sentence for helping him, after a judge deemed she only “did as she was bid”.
Cursty Shields has admitted she assisted Rebels’ strongman Matthew Bruce to run his ice-dealing business and to transport weapons, including a shotgun used in a terrifying drive-by shooting.
Shields, a mother of three, also pleaded guilty to filming a “promotional video” of Bruce test-firing an SKS assault rifle in Wombat State Park.
On Tuesday, the court heard Shields repeatedly pleaded with Bruce — who is facing life in prison — to give up his outlaw bikie life, sparking a series of violent assaults, including when she was pregnant with the couple’s child.
Barrister Cecily Hollingworth, for Shields, said the bikie enforcer had threatened Shields with guns and choked her to the point of unconsciousness during their volatile relationship.
After her arrest by the bikie-busting Echo taskforce in February last year, detectives revealed her sister Jessica, whom Shields had helped raise as a child, was having an affair with Bruce.
“This is just another example of the appalling manipulation she was subjected to,” Ms Hollingworth said. County Court judge Bill Stuart said it was a tragically typical pattern for young women exposed to domestic violence as a child.
He commended her “fierce determination” to turn her life around.
“She did as she was bid, the others perhaps had more of a choice — she didn’t,” Judge Stuart said. At a pre-sentence hearing, the court heard Shields had no relevant criminal history and no issues with drug or alcohol.
“Most people would’ve been crushed by what she has endured,” Judge Stuart said.
Prosecutor Andrew Grant said while he accepted her prospects of rehabilitation were good, the seriousness of the offending could not be ignored.
Judge Stuart said ordinarily, trafficking a commercial quantity of drugs would attract “significant” jail time, with a maximum of 25 years.
But he said he was considering a much lesser sentence considering the “remarkable coalition of powerful mitigating circumstances”.
Shields will be sentenced later.