Police reveal details of Broadbeach bikie brawl
- Greg Stolz
- The Courier-Mail
- May 06, 2015 11:48AM
Gold Coast bikie brawl 'a show of force'
Constable Matt Thompson was giving evidence at the trial of Bandidos bikie gang member Peter Mauric, who is charged with rioting over the 2013 brawl which sparked the state’s tough anti-bikie laws.
He told of seeing bikies spilling out of the Aura Tapas and Lounge Bar “and then all of a sudden it was on”.
“My colleagues were right in the middle and I observed two of them get punched in the head,” Const. Thompson told Southport Magistrates Court.
“(The bikies) were moving towards us in a confrontational, violent manner. They were calling us names — dogs, c****.
“I immediately pushed past a couple and drew my Taser.”
Const. Thompson said he used his Taser on one bikie who “immediately dropped to the ground”.
“I saw Tasers being drawn and also heard the distinctive noise of Tasers going off,” he said.
“I was yelling, telling them (bikies) to stay on the ground.”
Const. Thompson said he told one bikie to “put your f***ing hands behind your back”.
“Excuse my French (but) I called him a motherf***er,” he told the court.
Defence barrister Geoffrey Foster has accused police of inflaming the situation with their “extremely violent” reaction.
The trial continues.
A GOLD Coast cop has told of being confronted by a large group of “screaming and shouting” bikies with restaurant chairs raised as if they were about to throw them.
Constable Mathew Timoti was giving evidence at the trial of a Bandido outlaw motorcycle gang member charged over the infamous 2013 Broadbeach bikie brawl.
“They were very disorderly, very aggressive, screaming and shouting at police,” Const. Timoti told Southport Magistrates Court.
“(They were saying) ‘let’s go one on one ... without that uniform on, you’d be nothing’.
“They were very propped up, chests out, arms out, very staunch body language.”
Const. Tanti said several bikies picked up chairs from the Hog’s Breath Cafe and raised them as if “they were going to attempt to throw them at police”.
“I presented my Taser towards them and advised them to ‘move back, move back’,” he said.
On Tuesday, Constable Beau Tanton told the court how he exchanged punches with a Bandido bikie in what he described as “a very dangerous situation”.
He said he used his taser to break up a fight between one bikie and gang rival Jason Trouchet, who was allegedly being hunted by the Bandidos.
Bandido gang member, 45-year-old tow-truck driver Peter Mauric, has pleaded not guilty to rioting over his role in the brawl.
The brawl and subsequent siege of Southport Police Station, where Bandidos allegedly demanded the release of gang members, led to the state’s tough anti-bikie laws.