A senior Adelaide bikie charged over the discovery of a loaded gun, ammunition and $45,000 in cash hidden in a secret compartment of a car has lost a legal bid to access the medical records of the detective who investigated him.
Key points:
- Luke Anthony Pepper is facing a trial over firearms offences
- A detective allegedly discovered them at his house and in his car
- He has failed in a bid to obtain the police officer’s medical records
The man, Descendants bikie Luke Anthony Pepper, has pleaded not guilty to firearms offences.
He was due to face trial in October last year, however; the hearing was delayed until September this year, after a key witness — the investigating officer — was ruled medically unfit to give evidence based on the assessment of a psychologist.
Mr Pepper’s lawyer, Michael Abbott QC, pointed out the detective had posted to Facebook in 2016 that he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Mr Abbott questioned whether, given the health of the officer, he could “reasonably and rationally form a reasonable cause to suspect his client of committing the crime”.
The defence sought access to all medical, psychological and return-to-work documents relating to the detective, and documents connected with any internal investigation involving the officer.
Mr Abbott argued the defence wished to explore the reasons for the officer’s unfitness, including if it was related to police disciplinary proceedings.
Judge avoids ‘trawling’ by lawyer
But District Court judge Paul Slattery refused, saying he was not satisfied there was “any proper connection between the officer’s inability to give evidence, and for example, any disciplinary matters connected with the conduct of [the detective]”.
He agreed with a precedent set by retired judge Bruce Debelle that there had to be “special features of the circumstances” to provide “a reason not usually present for requiring disclosure”.
ABC News
)In August 2018, the detective allegedly found a gun in a hidden bunker behind a mirror in the garage of Mr Pepper’s Salisbury Heights home.
And in a four-wheel drive that was parked outside the Descendants’ headquarters in Para Hills West, the detective allegedly found a loaded handgun in a hidden compartment behind the radio, along with ammunition and cash totalling $45,100.
He also found bills and a passport belonging to Mr Pepper in the car.
Police separately accuse Mr Pepper of storming a car yard in Blair Athol last June.
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