Construction Executive Accused of Plotting Threats with Bikies
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Construction Executive Accused of Plotting Threats with Bikies
- A senior executive of Australian infrastructure company BMD has been accused of meeting with members of the Comancheros motorcycle gang in Brisbane as part of a plot to threaten a CFMEU activist.
- The alleged plot, which reportedly involved threats of violence against CFMEU crane operator Cody Raymond and his family on June 5, 2024, emerged during ongoing hearings at the Queensland Commission of Inquiry into the CFMEU.
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A senior executive from Australian infrastructure firm BMD is facing accusations of secretly meeting with members of the Comancheros bikie gang in a Brisbane sushi restaurant. The alleged purpose of this meeting was to orchestrate threats against a Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) activist who was reportedly causing issues on a government-funded project.
According to testimonies presented at the Queensland Commission of Inquiry into the CFMEU and alleged misconduct within the building industry, BMD had engaged a security firm, owned by Gary Samuel, to address the CFMEU’s activities on the Centenary Bridge project. As tensions escalated, Samuel allegedly recruited three Comancheros members to intimidate CFMEU crane operator Cody Raymond.
On June 5, 2024, Raymond was reportedly confronted at the $353 million Centenary Bridge upgrade project in Brisbane by former Melbourne Comancheros president Bemir Saracevic and two other bikie affiliates. Raymond claims he was threatened with his house being burned down and harm to his children. Evidence, including video footage and phone records, reportedly shows BMD executives communicating with Samuel as he transported the gang members and leading the trio towards Raymond’s crane. While BMD management has denied prior knowledge of the bikies’ involvement, they reportedly offered Raymond security services after the incident.
The inquiry heard that intelligence agencies learned in early May 2024 that the Comancheros had installed union delegates on Victorian construction sites and had been working to establish their own companies in the construction industry over the preceding 12 months. These revelations come amidst broader concerns about organized crime and bikie gang infiltration into major infrastructure projects, including through the CFMEU, which has been the subject of allegations of corruption and intimidation.