THREE Sydney men appeared in Wagga Local Court this morning in the wake of yesterday afternoon's dramatic police chase through the city and Forest Hill.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mirwais Danishyar, 20, Sam Mokofisi, 24, and Adam Samuel Jones, 27, made separate appearances before magistrate Megan Greenwood.
They faced court after being in custody overnight.
Police allege all three men are members of the Rebels outlaw motorcycle gang.
Danishyar and Mokofisi, both burly men, were each brought up from the courthouse cells by four Corrective Services officers, while three of the officers accompanied Jones.
Danishyar and Jones both had pronounced limps as they walked into the dock from the top of stairs that go down to the cells from the courtroom.
It is alleged the trio was in a white Hyundai Elantra that took off from Small Street as police converged on the area amid initial reports of an armed robbery about 5.15pm.
Police pursued the vehicle along the Sturt Highway to Forest Hill, where it is alleged a handgun and other items were thrown out of the car at the Forest Hill shopping centre.
The car chase ended in Braehour Road where it is alleged the three men jumped out of the car and fled on foot towards the Murrumbidgee River.
They were arrested shortly after.
The total court time for all three men yesterday was less than five minutes.
Danishyar, of Cherrybrook, appeared first when his case was mentioned by police prosecutor, Sergeant Andrew Pike, on behalf of Danishyar's Sydney lawyer.
Sergeant Pike said the solicitor had asked for the matter to be adjourned to next Monday.
Danishyar did not apply for bail, and it was formally refused by Ms Greenwood.
Danishyar will appear in court in person on Monday so he can give instructions to his solicitor directly.
Ms Greenwood asked Danishyar if he understood what was going on and if he agreed with Sergeant Pike's summary of his discussions with the Sydney solicitor.
He replied yes to both questions.
Mokofisi,of Dundas, appeared next, and the same process occurred.
He and Danishyar will be represented by the same lawyer on Monday.
Jones, of Marsden Park, was represented by Legal Aid solicitor PC Reddy as a friend of the court.
Mr Reddy said Jones would be speaking with his solicitor in Sydney.
Again, no application for bail was made and Jones was remanded in custody until Monday's court appearance.
Police investigations into the incident are continuing, including what the initial fracas in Small Street was really about.
Drugs have not been ruled out.
But at this stage it is alleged Jones had possession of the handgun.
He has been charged with affray, possessing a loaded pistol in a public place, not keeping a firearm safely, possessing an unauthorised pistol, possessing an unregistered pistol and possessing ammunition while unlicensed.
It is alleged Mokofisi was the driver of the Hyundai.
He has been charged with affray, negligent driving and police pursuit (Skye's Law).
It is alleged that Mokofisi drove at up to 110km/h in a 50km/h zone during the chase.
Danishyar has been charged with affray.
The affray charges against all three men relate to the drama in Small Street.
Police late yesterday dismissed fears of a hold-up in the street.
Police have released a statement saying the handgun was a home made pistol and that it was loaded when picked up by police.
"The handgun has been seized for forensic analysis, along with drug paraphernalia and a substance suspected of being amphetamines; this, too, has been sent for analysis," the statement said.