Accused Australian brawler paraded in Bali alongside his bouncer foes

Singapore/Bali: An Australian tourist caught on video in a wild brawl outside a Bali beach club has been paraded in prison orange by Indonesian authorities and marched back to detention, where he will remain indefinitely.

Mohamed Rifai, from south-west Sydney, faces up to five years in jail for his role in the February 11 all-in brawl outside the popular Finns Club in Canggu. But a more complex picture was emerging, and the 27-year-old was not the only one in trouble.

Sydney man Mohamed Rifai being led to a press conference in Bali on Thursday. Credit: Amilia Rosa

On Thursday Bali police also paraded eight security guards alleged to have acted outside the bounds of their job. They face even longer sentences of 5½ years if found guilty. However, one likely option instead of jail terms is restorative justice, whereby the parties sit down to resolve their differences and the harm caused to one another.

The nine men were lined up next to each other, their backs turned to the assembled media, behind Bali police chief Daniel Aditya Jaya and other officials.

That the police chief would lead the press conference personally spoke to the seriousness with which the local government and police viewed the case.

Video of the fight showed the involvement of several shirtless Australian tourists. One could be seen hitting a bouncer with what appeared to be a bollard. Despite the numbers, Rifai was the only one accused by the security guards in their witness reports.

Police said one of Rifai’s group, a man identified as John Ebid, then filed a report against 15 bouncers alleging he had been choked, punched and stepped on. Investigators who reviewed the CCTV footage concluded eight of them should also be detained.

A woman believed to be a family member of Rifai said after the press conference that the five Australians were fighting in self-defence and had been attacked by the bouncers.

“The security started it … they [Rifai and company] were trying to get out of the situation,” she said.

The police chief said the security guards were detained because the fight was outside the beach club and, therefore, allegedly beyond their operational zone. Their potential sentences are longer because they were acting in a group, while Rifai was the only member of the Australians to be reported.

According to accounts from the security guards, the drama began inside the club when Ebid bumped into a woman at the next lounge and got into a heated argument with a Singaporean man in her group.

Mohamed Rifai (far right) lined up beside the bouncers. Credit: Amilia Rosa

The bouncers kicked one or more of the Australians out, but Rifai allegedly did not take it well and threw a punch in the car park.

While not referring specifically to this case, Daniel said police had “tried to be pre-emptive by inviting several consulates to meet and discuss the problematic acting-up of foreign tourists.”

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