Night riders

There are shocking new claims about links between Darwin bikies and Australian soldiers, as Paul Toohey reports.

Officers at Robertson Barracks were warned four years ago that soldiers were being fed drugs by Darwin-based bikies in order to get them to pass on military equipment such as guns and night-vision goggles, but no action was taken, according to an insider with strong links to police and the military.

The source claims he went to a Darwin night spot frequented by a well-known bikie gang to investigate a scene in which soldiers were supplied fantasy – aka liquid ecstasy or GBH – free of charge. "One night when I was off duty I went there and saw about 20 soldiers walk in. All they were buying for the rest of the night was water. We all know you don't go to the pub to drink water.

"The bikies were throwing fantasy at them for free, and once they got them hooked up, they'd start putting the heavies on them in order to get weapons and Ninox [night-vision gear]." He says his recommendations that military and Territory police take follow-up action were ignored.

In a story published in The Bulletinearlier this year ("Stoned warriors", January 27), Territory police told of links between Darwin soldiers and bikies and of their suspicion that soldiers had swapped guns and night-vision equipment for drugs. Police later denied making the claims.

Robertson Barracks, just south of Darwin, is the home of 1 Brigade. The brigade has been in upheaval ever since 97 of its soldiers were drug-tested last October, with 47 returning positive results. This month, 24 of the 47 were finally given involuntary discharges.

"The bikies want to get into the army boys real bad," said the source, who won't be named due to his position in another state enforcement agency. "While I was up there a platoon's worth of Ninox gear – 30 night-vision goggles, six weapons' sights and 30 infra-red illuminators – went missing. The commander went ape-shit and said the base is shut until it turns up. And a few boys wandered in various directions and it all magically turned up. You and I might say that's a huge problem. The army says: 'Oh well, it won't happen again'. And that's the end of it."

The source alleges the bikies wanted the army's latest-generation equipment to defend their turf against other bikie groups trying to make inroads on the lucrative patch. "Southern gangs are really interested in Darwin - it's a big port town, close to Asia and there's a lot of opportunity for drugs," said the source. "There's been a bikie war brewing. In preparation for that, the [Darwin bikies] have been looking to equip themselves with state-of-the-art stuff. All this information was passed on to the army years ago. But in true army fashion, they've done ­nothing about it."

He claimed Territory police were also embarrassed that after years trying to infiltrate the Darwin bikies, they had failed to do so. "A few bikies basically have the run of the town," said the source. Systemic problems – which has seen cops leaving the Territory in droves, frustrated over being unable to investigate crimes properly – were being addressed after an inquiry last year recommended a drastic overhaul. But he said the army "shoved its head in the sand" when alerted to a problem.

An army spokesman told The Bulletin that since 1999 six sets of night-vision goggles have gone missing and remain unaccounted for.

Newshawk: Scott White
Pubdate: 3rd March 2004
Source: The Bulletin (Australia)
Author: Paul Toohey
Email: bulletinletters@acp.com.au