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The Canberra Times
The Canberra Times
National
Blake Foden

'Dangerous individual': Bikie boss accused of threatening 'everyone under the sun'

Ali Bilal leaves court on Thursday. Picture: Blake Foden

One of the country's top bikies is facing a lengthy list of charges after police tapped his phone for nearly a year and listened to him allegedly threaten "everyone under the sun".

Canberra Rebels president Ali Hassan Bilal, 50, was described as a "dangerous individual" in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday.

Police have charged the unemployed man, whom they allege is also the Rebels' national sergeant-at-arms, with eight counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence and two telecommunications offences of threatening serious harm.

Mr Bilal, who once changed his name to Tony Soprano, also faces charges of threatening to harm a public official, and failing to comply with an order made by a magistrate.

The Wollogorang man, who has pleaded not guilty, made a partially successful application to vary his bail conditions on Thursday.

The conditions had been imposed by police on December 23, when officers arrested Mr Bilal in Braddon.

The Chrysler 300C sedan seized when Ali Bilal was arrested. Picture: ACT Policing

Police claim to have that day spotted the 50-year-old getting into the driver's seat of a Chrysler 300C sedan that was allegedly purchased with the proceeds of crime.

A 20-page police document, tendered in court on Thursday, shows detectives had been intercepting Mr Bilal's phone calls for about 11 months by the time he was arrested.

Transcripts of the expletive-laden calls reveal an array of threats Mr Bilal is alleged to have made in relation to a lengthy list of people.

A number of the conversations featured the person on the other end of the line asking Mr Bilal to explain what they had done to upset him as he launched tirades at them.

"I'm gonna stomp on your f---en head now," Mr Bilal allegedly screamed at a confused man in the earliest example.

Another call, in May 2021, began quite pleasantly as Mr Bilal politely introduced himself as the Canberra Rebels president.

Ali Bilal, left, leaves court with lawyer Peter Woodhouse. Picture: Blake Foden

Police allege it quickly turned nasty, however, when the 50-year-old declared there was "a problem" and said he was owed $22,000.

"You better f---en find [the money] before I f---en find you," Mr Bilal is accused of telling the man on the other end of the call.

A month later, the 50-year-old was talking to a woman about someone else when he allegedly said: "I want this c--- dead tonight."

"I'm gonna f--- him, his mother, his father. I'm not gonna leave anybody tonight," he allegedly said.

In one of many other examples from the transcripts, the 50-year-old allegedly threatened to put a man "in a f---en hole".

Prosecutor Soraya Saikal-Skea cited the transcripts on Thursday, saying they made it clear Mr Bilal was "a fairly dangerous individual".

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She urged magistrate James Lawton to look at "the seriousness of what Mr Bilal has said to everyone under the sun", drawing particular attention to the man having allegedly threatened to "knock the c---'s head off" while speaking about a police officer.

Ms Saikal-Skea did not oppose defence lawyer Peter Woodhouse's application to reduce the number of days Mr Bilal must report to police.

However, she argued against deleting alleged Canberra Rebels sergeant-at-arms Benjamin Moarefi and member Baha Souweid from a list of people Mr Bilal must not contact.

Mr Woodhouse told the court neither of these men were involved in the alleged crimes of Mr Bilal, who was the godfather of "dear friend" Mr Moarefi's children.

He added that Mr Bilal needed Mr Souweid to build some dog kennels and a shed on his property.

Benjamin Moarefi, who is said to be a "dear friend" of Ali Bilal. Picture: Blake Foden

But Ms Saikal-Skea said the non-contact conditions were warranted because outlaw motorcycle gangs operated as organised criminal networks, and police wanted to "disrupt [the] chain" by preventing Mr Bilal from speaking to those men.

Of the proposed bail changes, she said: "Allow this sergeant-at-arms to contact that sergeant-at-arms because [Mr Bilal] needs him to build a kennel or something. I mean, seriously?"

Mr Lawton ultimately declined to vary the bail conditions, aside from the uncontroversial change that only requires Mr Bilal to report to police once a week rather than three times.

Mr Bilal is due back in court on April 1.

"Get a good photo," he told this reporter as he left. "Don't put a bad one in."

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