The president of Canberra's Satudarah bikie gang chapter has been slapped with another jail term after he stumbled across drugs in jail and later "secreted" them.
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Darin Paul Keir, 41, fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday. He previously pleaded guilty to two charges: possessing a prohibited item as a detainee, and possessing a prohibited weapon - namely, a 38-centimetre extendable baton.
Magistrate Louise Taylor said the first charge stemmed from an incident at the Alexander Maconochie Centre in September of 2019, when corrections officers found Keir in possession of two red balloons.
One contained more than 3 grams of methamphetamine, while the other contained about 6 grams of a mixture of cocaine and heroin.
Ms Taylor said Keir had secreted the drugs.
Police documents previously tendered to the court said: "The defendant was instructed to remove his underwear resulting in a small red coloured balloon falling to the floor.
"[A corrections officer] observed another red coloured object located in the crotch area of the defendant.
"Another small red coloured balloon fell to the ground."
Ms Taylor said Keir told officers he'd stumbled across the drugs on his way back from a prison change room and decided to keep them. The magistrate said there was no evidence to the contrary.
She said the weapons charge stemmed from a police search of Keir's car in February last year, when officers found him in possession of the baton.
The bikie boss told police the baton was his, but he didn't know it was illegal to possess it - especially given he'd bought it off the internet.
Ms Taylor on Wednesday said Keir had other matters pending before the courts, and was due to face hearings in March and April this year.
In September last year, Keir fronted court accused of possessing more than $8000 in dirty cash and 11 grams of methamphetamine.
At the time, Keir's lawyer Tim Sharman said there was evidence his client's cash was not the proceeds of crime, but money "withdrawn from online poker machines".
On Wednesday, Mr Sharman said Keir had exhausted his chances of getting bail in his other matters, so the 41-year-old couldn't walk free regardless of the magistrate's sentence.
He conceded Keir had been in and out of jail, particularly over the past five or six years, for drug-related offences.
Ms Taylor sentenced Keir to a total two months in prison for the prohibited weapons and prohibited item offences, and backdated the sentences to September last year to account for the time he'd already served in jail on remand.
She noted possessing drugs in jail undermined "the integrity of the security of the detention facility".
Police have previously identified Keir as the third president of the upstart Canberra chapter of the Satudarah outlaw motorcycle gang, a feared bikie club with origins in the Netherlands.
The chapter's first two leaders, Dean Stephen Reid and David Micheal Evans, are now serving sentences in Canberra's jail after being locked up within two weeks of each other in early 2019.
Cassandra Morgan
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
