Lawyers wrangle over bail conditions for Matt Wright after chopper crash
Outback Wrangler host Matt Wright’s lawyers fight to have three words cut from their client’s bail conditions as he relaxes on a luxury superyacht.
Lawyers for Outback Wrangler host Matt Wright are fighting to have three words cut from their client’s bail conditions as the Netflix star enjoys a summer holiday aboard a luxury superyacht.
In November Wright was charged with seven serious criminal offences relating to the fatal Northern Territory chopper crash that killed his reality television co-star Chris “Willow” Wilson.
The 43-year-old’s matter, along with those of co-accused Neil Mellon and Michael Burbidge, were all mentioned in the Darwin Local Court on Wednesday.
The three men have all been charged with offences – including making false statements, destroying evidence and either conspiring or attempting to pervert the course of justice – stemming from the major crash investigation into the fatal helicopter incident.
Wilson – who starred on reality television show Outback Wrangler and features in new Netflix series Matt Wright’s Wild Territory – was killed when the Robinson R44 helicopter he was dangling from crashed during a crocodile egg collecting mission at West Arnhem Land on February 28 last year.
The destroyed Raven II registered VH-IDW on which Wilson was a passenger was owned by Wright’s company Helibrook.
On Wednesday Crown prosecutor Collette Dixon told the court that Wright’s lawyer Giles O‘Brien-Hartcher wanted to “remove three words” from the celebrity croc-wrangler’s bail conditions but that the two parties have a “different recollection” of their private conversation about it.
The changes were set down to be argued in the Darwin Local Court on Friday.
This comes as Wright’s wife Kaia shared happy snaps and videos on social media of the family living it up aboard private charter Southern Cloud earlier this week.
The images show the family of four swimming, fishing, jetskiing and relaxing while cruising on the three-masted Bermuda-rigged schooner.
Judge Greg MacDonald also heard that defence lawyers for the accused are yet to receive complete briefs of evidence because the NT Police investigation into fatal chopper crash and its aftermath is ongoing.
Ms Dixon told the court that evidence was still being gathered.
“We will disclose whatever we have,” she said.
Judge MacDonald ordered a brief be provided to the defendants’ lawyers within a fortnight.
Meanwhile Mellon’s lawyer Sally Ozolins said her client was seeking to have lawyer Ray Murphy, who is representing his wife Sandi Mellon on unrelated charges, removed from his no-contact list.
Mellon is currently banned from contacting Mr Murphy in relation to one of his charges of disclosing confidential information.
The court heard that Mellon is also seeking access to his passport and permission to go on an overseas cruise in March as well as apply for a fly-in-fly-out high-risk assessment officer role with a multinational company based in Singapore.
The prosecution opposed changes to Mellon’s bail conditions but Judge MacDonald asked the parties to debate it privately or reapply for a separate bail hearing.
Mellon, Burbidge and Wright are all due back in court on March 9 for a preliminary examination mention.
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