Coronavirus: Covid-positive bikie Shane Bowden flew into Qld from Victoria

The Covid-infected bikie, jailed over a 2006 brawl, is accused of lying on his border pass and flying to Qld from Victoria.

Mongols bikie Shane Bowden. Picture: Supplied

A prominent bikie has been accused of entering Queensland with COVID-19 and lying on his border pass, forcing 83 passengers who shared his flight to go into quarantine.

Shane Bowden, who was on Tuesday photographed being taken to a Gold Coast hospital with reported health complications from a recent gunshot wound, is facing a criminal investigation over his arrival in the state from Victoria.

Police Deputy Commissioner Steve Gollschewski said a 48-year-old man arrived at Brisbane Airport from Melbourne on a Jetstar flight on Monday and was immediately placed into hotel quarantine.

“Our initial investigations have indicated to us that this person is COVID positive and was COVID positive whilst in Victoria,” Mr Gollschewski said.

“And it would appear (he) has provided untrue information in relation to the border declaration pass.

“A criminal investigation is now under way for serious offences as well as failure to properly declare when entering Queensland.

“I’m not going to go into the details of the actual potential offences at this stage, other than to say this is going to be completely and thoroughly investigated by Queensland authorities in collaboration with our Victorian counterparts.”

Bowden was jailed for almost seven years for his role in the infamous “Ballroom Blitz” brawl at the Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast in 2006.

He arrived via flight JQ560 at 9.19am Monday.

“That person was intercepted at our border with a border-declaration pass claiming entry into the state but was placed into quarantine by police,” Mr Gollschewski said.

“This male person is well known to us. He Has not been charged with any offences.

“We are working with Queensland Health. This person travelled on a plane with some 84 persons, all who have also been placed into quarantine.”

Shane Bowden. Picture: Supplied

Bowden is wheeled out of a Surfers Paradise hotel on the way to Gold Coast University Hospital. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Further contract tracing was underway to make sure “all those persons are looked after firstly, but also tested for COVID to make sure that no-one else has caught that disease”, he said.

Police only verified Bowden’s identity after he was placed into quarantine.

“I’m pleased that our system was able to identify this person, clearly this is a significant risk to be doing this sort of thing.

“There are serious consequences for that. The offences that we are investigating are not just simply the false declaration, they’re also criminal offences under the criminal code. We’re taking this extremely seriously.

“Quite simply (border authorities) were not satisfied that the person had met the requirements to enter.

“Also coming out of Victoria, it’s a hotspot so unless you have an exemption approved under the processes that have been set by the Chief Health Officer, they can’t get in. He was appropriately put into quarantine.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said it was an example of “great work from the police”.

“This goes to show how strong our order measures are and the fact that they are working,” she said.

The Ballroom Blitz was a wild brawl involving Hells Angels and Finks in the middle of a crowd of 1800 at a kickboxing match.

During the brawl, Bowden had pulled out a handgun and shot Melbourne bikie Christopher Wayne Hudson, in apparent retribution for Hudson defecting to the Hells Angels.

Bowden – who patched over to the Mongols but was later kicked out of the club – was shot and wounded in a drive-by shooting in Melbourne in July, just two weeks’ after leaving prison.

He was photographed being transferred from the Voco Hotel in Surfers Paradise to Gold Coast University Hospital. The Courier-Mail reported his gunshot wound had become infected.

Victorian authorities had been attempting to locate the man before he turned up in Queensland.

Health Minister Steven Miles said Victorian health officials advised that the man had previously tested positive to the virus.

“Authorities in Queensland and Victoria will now investigate whether he has committed an offence,” he said.

“He was intercepted at the airport as someone coming from a hotspot and put into quarantine.

“Victorian authorities, subsequent to that, advised that he was positive.”