Investigators probing the aftermath of a deadly helicopter crash linked to Netflix croc star Matt Wright covertly bugged the Outback Wrangler’s family home and secretly recorded his private conversations with his wife, Kaia.
Wright, 45, is facing a trial at the Northern Territory Supreme Court in Darwin after pleading not guilty to three charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice.
The jury trial relates to a fatal helicopter crash that claimed the life of Wright’s Netflix co-star Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson during a 2022 crocodile egg-harvesting mission.
Wright, whose wife has been by his side every day of the trial, was not the pilot during the February 28, 2022 mission, which saw Mr Wilson suspended in a 30m sling beneath a Robinson R44 helicopter.
The helicopter, referred to as ‘IDW’ in the trial, crashed in a paperbark swamp near King River, a remote part of West Arnhem Land, 500km east of Darwin.
Mr Wilson, a father-of-two, had been suspended by the sling under the chopper, picking eggs from crocodile nests but allegedly fell more than 5m to his death.
Pilot Seb Robinson, who will give evidence, the court heard, was left a paraplegic by the crash. He and Mr Wilson were both sub-contracting for Wright’s recently liquidated company Helibrook.
Dani Wilson, Mr Wilson’s widow, has been a spectator during the opening days of the criminal trial.
Matt Wright and wife Kaia arrive at court on Wednesday
Dani Wilson, Mr Wilson’s widow, has been a regular spectator during the criminal trial.
Pilot Seb Robinson (left) with Mr Wilson
The court heard on Wednesday that Wright was probed for his alleged actions following the crash, between March and September 2022, in Darwin and other locations.
At the centre of the case is the allegation that Wright impeded the investigation in the months following the fatal crash.
Prosecutors allege Wright did not properly follow maintenance rules for his helicopters and had attempted to conceal this after the crash.
Crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC told the 14-person jury that investigators bugged Wright’s home and tapped his phone while they probed the crash.
Mr Gullaci told the jury that multiple conversations Wright had with his wife were covertly recorded including one discussion which occurred on September 22, 2022.
The jury heard Kaia asked her husband that if he was being honest, how many hours did he believe IDW had been overflown?
Mr Gullaci explained the model of helicopter involved in the crash needed to be scrapped, or undertake a $400,000 overhaul, once it reached 2,200 recorded flight hours. The jury also heard the helicopter needed to be serviced every 50 hours, according to Australian aviation regulations.
In the recording, the jury heard Wright said: ‘A couple of hundred, I think, ten percent… I think 200.’
Mr Gullaci also said Wright and his wife discussed how he didn’t properly log hours, and he didn’t even own a ‘f***in book’, which the jury heard was meant to mean a helicopter flight hours logbook.
Wright also feared video footage of his helicopters taken during TV production and other times could lead investigators to conclude the recorded flight times did not correlate.
Wright and his legal team leave court on Tuesday
Ms Wilson appeared at court looking well-dressed on Tuesday
Mr Gullaci said Wright, in his role as owner and chief pilot of Helibrook, was motivated to cover his tracks because he hadn’t kept proper records.
The jury heard allegations Helibrook pilots regularly failed to record flight hours and Wright ordered pilots not to record to flight hours.
Mr Gullaci said it was the prosecution case Wright had a motivation to ’actively’ meddle with the investigation because he believed if his under-recording of hours was uncovered could be considered a reason for the deadly crash.
The jury heard IDW was registered to fly with Helibrook in 2020 and a company owned by Wright purchased when it had 1594 hours on the clock and when it crashed it had 2020 recorded hours – 130 hours under the threshold.
The prosecution alleged the helicopter had flown more than 2200 hours and Wright had attempted to cover the bogus numbers up.
Hospital recording
The jury also heard revelations that investigators covertly recorded a conversation between Wright and pilot Seb Robinson while the latter was at hospital receiving intense treatment on March 13, 2022.
Mr Gullaci said Mr Wright also had a conversation with Mr Robinson on March 11 but only a partial recording of the March 13 conversation will be played to the court.
Mr Gullaci also said covert recordings, limited phone intercepts and a recorded statutory declaration made by Wright will be played to the jury during the course of the expected five-week trial.
Investigators had Wright’s family home bugged
Mr Gullaci acknowledged slinging for croc eggs was ‘incredibly brave and risky and dangerous due to the remote nature of the job.
Mr Gullaci also stressed that Wright was not responsible for the death of Mr Wilson or Mr Robinson’s serious injury.
The court also heard Wright and two other men rushed to the accident scene in another helicopter which was also ‘incredibly brave’.
However, Mr Gullaci alleged Wright moved to cover up his operation because he knew as early as the day of the crash that there would be an investigation.
‘Mr Wright, on the day of the crash, knew there would be an investigation,’ Mr Gullaci alleged.
‘He knew there would, at least, an investigation, if not not multiple investigations.’
It’s alleged Wright withheld documents and altered records, the jury was told.
Wright also allegedly knew he or one of his companies could be charged with criminal offences.
Multiple authorities investigated the crash, including the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the NT Police.
A Current Affair segment sparks headaches
The trial got off to a late start after the jury heard there was an issue with an A Current Affair segment which aired just hours after empanelment was completed on Tuesday evening.
Acting Justice Alan Blow asked the jury if they had seen the segment to which one juror said they had but it didn’t affect their ability to be impartial.
Justice Blow explained to the jury the ACA segment was problematic
‘It seems clear it was a piece of journalism that was aimed to suggest Mr Wright is guilty, or something, and that’s not what TV journalists should be doing,’ Justice Blow said.
‘It was a segment screened on the Nine Network the night before the trial was to get underway…, a list of witnesses was screened, it’s a stale list, it’s not the same list which was read out to you yesterday.
‘There was a photo screened of the crash-site… it’s not suggested Mr Wright is responsible for the crashing of the helicopter…
‘If you watched the program you might get the impression that he was responsible for doing something and he’s heading to jail for it.
‘There were various other aspects of the program that were quite unfair and created a danger of this trial having to be aborted.’
Justice Blow also warned the jury not to try and access the segment before giving the jurors routine directions including not to speak to anyone involved in the case.
He also said ‘don’t be offended’ if they encountered someone from the court case on the street and they ignored them.
Wright’s lead barrister David Edwardson KC is expected to provide a brief response to the Crown opening either today or tomorrow.
Mr Gullaci said the first prosecution witness will be crocodile farmer Michael Burns who had contracted Wright to gather eggs.
Multiple witnesses, including police, experts and Mr Robinson, are due to give evidence in the trial, which Justice Blow said could last for five weeks.
Wright’s chief helicopter pilot, Michael Keith Burbidge, is also expected to attend with his wife, Jade Burbidge, when he appears as a witness.
Dani and Willow had two children together
Witnesses in the trial will include the pilots, as well as fellow TV crew members, major Top End business figures and crocodile egg collectors.
Wright’s lead role in Outback Wrangler – before launching his Netflix and Channel Nine spin-off – was believed to have earned him at least $250,000 per season.
Wild Croc Territory featured Wright as both the main star and executive producer, working alongside his agent, Nick Fordham, further boosting his income.
However, the first season of the show, which co-starred Mr Wilson, was derailed by the crash that led to his death.
After the accident, Netflix continued to stream the first season of Wild Croc Territory despite a request from Ms Wilson to cease, but a planned second season for 2023 has never aired.
Wright previously had endorsement deals with Ariat, Yokohama Tyres Australia and Otis Eyewear. Tourism Australia also dropped him as a ‘Friends of Australia’ ambassador.
The trial continues.
