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Home / World

Sydney airport brawl sparked by encounter on flight, court told

AAP
23 Mar, 2009 07:01 PM3 mins to read

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A policeman works at a scene of the brawl at Sydney airport. Photo / AP
A policeman works at a scene of the brawl at Sydney airport. Photo / AP

A policeman works at a scene of the brawl at Sydney airport. Photo / AP

A deadly brawl between bikies that rolled through a domestic terminal at Sydney airport was sparked by the chance encounter of rival members on a flight from Melbourne, a court has been told.

Anthony Zervas, 29, was bludgeoned to death at Qantas' T3 terminal on Sunday in a brawl involving members of the Hells Angels and Comancheros bikie gangs.

Four men accused of being involved faced Sydney's Central Local Court on Monday.

Ismail Erden, 26, of Kingsford, Maher Aouli, 28, of Casula, Pomare Pirini, 21, of Georges Hall, and Zoran Kisacanin, 22, of Ingleburn, have each been charged with one count of affray.

Police facts tendered to the court said the brawl broke out just after 1.30pm AEDT (3.30pm NZT) on Sunday when a Qantas flight carrying senior members of both gangs landed in Sydney.

Pirini and Erden, who told police he is a Comancheros member, were on the flight but police do not know whether Aouli and Kisacanin were also passengers.

The barrister for all four men, John Korn, told the court the accused were confronted at an airport exit by other men armed with knives and knuckledusters.

"They were very much the attackees," Mr Korn said.

The brawl was not planned but was rather a "chance meeting," the barrister said.

According to the police facts, passengers on the plane saw a group of six heavily tattooed men sitting in an "agitated state" and using their mobile phones throughout the flight.

While passengers were making their way through the terminal, staff heard the group shouting and yelling.

A separate group of six to 10 men of Middle Eastern appearance arrived at Terminal Three and asked staff for directions to arrival gate five, the facts stated.

It's alleged two of the men from that group stayed outside the gate, where the brawl broke out.

Witnesses allegedly heard one man yell out: "I'm going to kill you, you c***, I am going to kill you."

The brawl then sprawled out through the airport terminal, where the men broke into smaller groups.

Onlookers told police they saw two men kicking and punching Mr Zervas, who was on the ground.

One of the men allegedly hit him over the head with a metal pole using "significant force", before witnesses heard a "crunching sound".

Members of the public and Mr Zervas' brother Peter, who was wearing a Hells Angels singlet, attempted to revive him while men involved in the brawl fled.

Aouli, Erden, Kisacanin and Pirini were stopped by police in Brighton Le Sands in a taxi they had taken from the airport.

Police are yet to view CCTV footage of the incident, the court was told.

Kisacanin was the only one of the four to apply for bail but it was refused by Magistrate Allan Moore due to the seriousness of the matter.

The case will resume on today in the same court.

- AAP

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