Australasian biker news
Nightclub linked to bikies will stay
shut
ANDREW HOUGH
15sep05
ONE of Adelaide's biggest nightclubs was linked to "undesirable" people who
were associated with bikie gang members, a court heard yesterday.
Heaven nightclub, closed since the
beginning of the month, will remain shut indefinitely after an application
to transfer its licence to a private company failed in the Liquor Licensing
Court.
In the first case of its type in South
Australia, Liquor Licensing Commissioner Bill Pryor and Police Commissioner
Mal Hyde both lodged intervention orders against several people they believe
should not operate nightclubs.
This follows a vow by Premier Mike
Rann to crack down on bikie gangs and their activities.
Darrell O'Brien, a sole shareholder of
In The City Pty Ltd, applied to the court to have the licence transferred
from the club's current management, Adelaide City Entertainment, and its
former director, John Pike.
Authorities have been concerned about Mr Pike's relationships with people
linked to crime.
Counsel for the Licensing Commissioner Mark Nichols told the court the
transfer was opposed because of the "undesirable" nature of people linked to
the nightclub.
The club, which employs about 100 people and has an annual turnover of $5
million to $6 million, was closed on September 2 after ACE got into
financial difficulty.
An application was also tendered to the court yesterday by prominent
businessman Damian Lester to transfer the licence to him, in a bid to
alleviate authorities' concerns about Mr Pike. That application also failed.
The court heard yesterday that because of the alleged relationships the men
had with people linked to criminal activity or bikie gangs, the application
should be refused. Mr Nichols said an associate of Mr Pike's, Paul Pavlovski,
director of the club's landlord, West North Pty Ltd - a company in which Mr
Lester is a major shareholder - was found guilty of possessing cocaine and
serious assault. He said Pavlovski, whom the court heard was also an
associate of former Gypsy Jokers bikie club president Anthony Sobey, was
found to not be a "fit and proper" person in Victoria.
"For all of these reasons, the only reasonable way forward . . . is for this
application to be struck out," he said.
Acting Judge David Gurry dismissed the application, saying the parties were
free to lodge another application at a later date.
Club bouncers to face crackdown
September 13, 2005
FINGERPRINT checks and drug tests will be used to break the ties between
organised crime and bouncers in South Australian pubs and clubs.
Attorney-General Michael Atkinson
said the government was appalled when it was told by police in 2002 that
80 per cent of crowd controller firms in SA had links to outlawed
motorcycle gangs.
He said the government had since
drafted new laws to break the connection between organised crime and the
crowd control industry, with the crackdown to start in December.
Under the changes, bouncers will
have their fingerprints checked. They could have their licence suspended
if they are charged with certain offences, including assault or drug or
firearm charges, regardless of whether or not they are convicted.
They will also be subject to
random drug and alcohol tests and will have to undergo a psychological
assessment to ensure they are suited to working in the industry.
"These laws are about stamping out drug dealing and other crime rackets
that siphon off profits from the hospitality trade," Mr Atkinson said.
"It will work by introducing more robust checks on licensees and
disciplinary action against existing licensees who may be involved with
organised crime."
Mr Atkinson said that, under the new regime, an applicant for a crowd
controller licence would be judged by the company they keep as well as
by any intelligence police might have about them.
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