By Jordan Baker and Perry Duffin
Accused criminals remain on bail at a high-profile rehabilitation facility despite an urgent investigation into its methods by the Attorney-General’s Department and the alleged escape of a client accused of serious drug and gun offences.
Hussein Chamas is accused of fleeing the Connect Global centre on the NSW Mid North Coast in early January, a month after a Herald investigation exposed concerns about the facility. On Tuesday, his lawyer said he had been apprehended in a remote part of the Northern Territory.
Hussein Chamas, accused drug importer, allegedly fled Connect Global rehab centre at Swan Bay, north of Newcastle, using forged documents in early January.Credit: AFP
The rehabilitation facility at Swan Bay, which once hosted addiction-ravaged former game show host Andrew O’Keefe, faces an uncertain future; client numbers have been halved, providers have cancelled programs and its founder has moved to New Zealand.
Up to 20 clients are still at the heavily Christian facility, many of whom are facing criminal charges and are there on bail.
But there have not yet been any applications from police or prosecutors to vary bail or detain residents despite concerns that it is unable to track or monitor those motivated to flee, a source close to Connect Global said.
Local and state politicians have called for prompt action, saying the community deserves to be confident of its safety and the justice system should not be relying on the unregulated, unaccountable private sector for rehabilitation services.
Connect Global has operated out of the rundown Fisherman’s Village tourist park near Port Stephens for a decade. It has faced staunch opposition from the council and locals, particularly because it shares the former tourist cabins with private residents.
Its clients have included high-ranking bikie bosses, men with histories of violence and high-level drug dealers. Between 2017 and 2020, the Fisherman’s Village cabins were also used as emergency accommodation for children in state care.
After the Herald revealed concerns about the adequacy of treatment and supervision at Connect Global, particularly access to alcohol and mobile phones in contravention of bail conditions, the Attorney-General’s Department began an urgent inquiry.
It also wrote to legal associations in mid-December, alerting the state’s solicitors and barristers to the allegations. “It was a matter of when, not if, something like this happened,” one criminal lawyer, close to Connect Global bail cases, told the Herald.
Chamas had been at the facility for a year and a half before allegedly fleeing in contravention of his bail conditions on January 8. People close to him had provided a $3.65 million surety, and he wore an ankle bracelet.
Connect Global staff said Chamas appeared to have given rehab staff forged documents with a NSW Supreme Court letterhead, suggesting the court would let him return to Sydney for a few days while conferencing with his lawyers.
A warrant was issued for his arrest. On Tuesday, Chamas’ barrister, Carolyn Davenport, SC, told the court her client had been arrested by the Australian Federal Police in Gove, a remote peninsula on the furthest tip of Arnhem Land.
He was expected to front Darwin Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
Chamas’ alleged escape has intensified concerns about Connect Global. Directors are exploring whether the rehab will be shut down and reopened or sold. It won a protracted court battle with council for permission to operate late last year.
Connect Global founder pastor Ross Pene at the Port Stephens site.Credit: Nine News
The opposition’s justice spokesman, Alister Henskens, called for the attorney-general’s investigation into Connect Global to be hastened, as the allegations raised serious questions about community safety and the administration of justice in NSW.
“It is essential that the attorney-general requires the investigation to be concluded immediately,” he said. “It’s unfair to both the community and the judiciary if there is any delay in determining the truth of the alleged deficiencies at the facility.
“If confirmed, it will be incumbent upon the prosecutor in each case to immediately bring the true circumstances to the court’s attention because it will probably be a material change in the information before the court when bail with conditions was granted.”
Port Stephens councillor Giacomo Arnott, who is concerned about the facility’s impact on residents, called on prosecutors and courts to review the bail conditions of the remaining men.
“The local community would no doubt appreciate a second set of eyes on this issue, to ensure community safety is prioritised and guaranteed by the state,” he said.
Greens justice spokeswoman Sue Higginson also raised concerns about the lack of oversight of the NSW private rehabilitation sector, an option many desperate people were forced to consider because public investment in rehab was so low.
She questioned how NSW, with its longstanding emphasis on law and order, could have such a cavalier approach to overseeing rehabilitation for those in the justice system.
“The more you look into it, the more you see how fraught the private rehab sector is,” she said. “There’s an entire system with no accountability, no oversight and no investment. It’s a very dark spot.”
NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley was contacted for comment. A NSW Police spokeswoman said queries about bail conditions should be directed to the courts.
Late last year, the pastor who founded Connect Global about 10 years ago, Ross Pene – also affiliated with the Hillsong and C3 churches – left for New Zealand to care for a sick family member. Staff say Pene has “retired” from Connect Global as its future hangs in the balance and an interim boss runs the facility. Pene was contacted for comment but did not reply.
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