Reality TV star offered $10,000 to injured pilot's family, court hears
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Herald Sun
9 hours ago
- Herald Sun
Outback Wrangler Matt Wright offered chopper crash survivor's family $10K
An Aussie reality television star offered the family of his paraplegic pilot $10,000 to help during his recovery in the wake of a catastrophic chopper crash, a court has been told. The mother of Sebastian Robinson has accused Netflix and Apple TV reality star Matt Wright of pressuring her 28-year-old son to manipulate flight records after the helicopter crash on February 28, 2022. Mr Robinson was the sole survivor after a Robinson R-44 crashed into a paperbark swamp over the King River, Arnhem Land during a crocodile egg collecting mission, killing his friend and 34-year-old father, Chris 'Willow' Wilson. Croc egg collector Chris Wilson was killed, while his pilot Sebastian Robinson was critically injured in a helicopter crash on the King River, West Arnhem on February 28. Their boss and the star of 'Outback Wrangler' and 'Wild Croc Territory' Mr Wright has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. It is alleged Mr Wright knew the helicopter should never have flown that morning, as it had overrun a 2200 flight hour maintenance requirement. Mr Robinson, along with his brother, uncle and mother have all alleged Mr Wright visited Brisbane Hospital to ask the critically injured pilot to move 'a few hours' from the crashed helicopter's records to his personal R-44. On Wednesday, Mr Robinson's mother confirmed Mr Wright offered her family $10,000 to help with their bills during his first visit on March 11. 'That is another example of how he was trying to help you, your family and Sebastian, wasn't it?' Mr Wright's senior defence counsel David Edwardson asked. 'No,' she replied. Pilot Sebastian Robinson during filming of Kane Chenoweth's documentary Sky Cowboy in February 2022. Mr Robinson's mother said they declined Mr Wright's $10,000 offer, saying 'we told him we didn't want it'. Ms Chellingworth's diary records claimed on that same visit, 'Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Seb to put hours on his helicopter'. Over two days of evidence, Mr Edwardson has accused Ms Chellingworth and her two sons of putting 'your heads together and made these false allegations against Mr Wright'. She denied Mr Edwardson's accusations she forged her diary records. Seb Robinson's mother Noelene Chellingworth approaching the Supreme Court in Darwin, giving evidence at the trial of Outback Wrangler Matt Wright on Wednesday August 20. Picture: NewsWire / Pema Tamang Pakhrin The jury heard Mr Wright had not covered any of Mr Robinson's medical expenses and he has been unable to access worker's compensation. In emotional testimony, his mother recounted how doctors initially told her that her son was 'unlikely to survive that night'. The Darwin mother described the relief, and then grief as her son woke up from his coma only to be told he would never walk again. 'I was so devastated,' Ms Chellingworth said through tears on Wednesday. 'I said to God: 'Why? You let me have a quadriplegic brother that I cared for for 20 years, and now I've got a paraplegic son'. 'He must have given it to me because I could handle it.' She said her son was an adventurous, active and outdoorsy young man who had been crocodile egg collecting for almost a decade, but after the crash Mr Robinson faced the real prospect he would never work again. 'He wasn't going to be dropped in a wheelchair to collect eggs, was he?' prosecutor Jason Gullaci said. Ms Chellingworth said following the crash she got legal advice, but was told her son could not receive any workers' compensation as he was an independent contractor, rather than Mr Wright's employee. Seb Robinson's mother Noelene Chellingworth approaching the Supreme Court in Darwin, giving evidence at the trial of Outback Wrangler Matt Wright on Wednesday August 20. Picture: NewsWire / Pema Tamang Pakhrin The jury was shown two versions of invoices from Mr Robinson for his Wet Season flights, prepared by Ms Chellingworth after the crash. The first invoice detailed each individual flight Mr Robinson took that egg collecting season, which Ms Chellingworth said she sent to Wild Harvest NT director Mick Burns. A second $21,500 bill was then sent to Mr Wright, only providing monthly totals for the flights. Ms Chellingworth's diary included an entry on March 13 alleging it was Mr Wright who asked her to re-invoice the bill with less detail for her son's egg collecting season. 'Matt doesn't want days on his invoice, only monthly totals,' Ms Chellingworth wrote. She denied Mr Edwardson's accusations she forged that diary note and only filed the second invoice to Mr Wright 'in the hope that you might be able to claim workers' compensation under his insurance policy'. The trial continues. Originally published as Outback Wrangler Matt Wright offered paraplegic pilot Seb Robinson's family $10,000 in hospital visit, court told
The Advertiser
13 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Witness accused of lying to protect reality TV star
A witness has been accused of lying to protect reality TV star Matt Wright from accusations he tried to cover up evidence following a fatal helicopter crash. The Outback Wrangler star is on trial in Darwin Supreme Court having pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The charges follow a crash in February 2022 that killed Wright's friend and co-star Chris "Willow" Wilson on a crocodile-egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Pilot Sebastian Robinson, 32, was left a paraplegic. Prosecutors allege Wright was worried investigators would learn his choppers' flying-hour meters were regularly disconnected to extend flying hours beyond official thresholds and that paperwork was falsified. In court on Wednesday Tim Johnston, a manager at Wright's company Helibrook, was accused by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC of lying about a visit he made to Mr Robinson in hospital days after the crash. Mr Johnston earlier told the jury he had been asked by Wright's friend Jai Tomlinson to pick up items from Mr Robinson's family at the hospital but he had not been told what they were. Mr Johnston met Mr Robinson's mother, Noelene Chellingworth, in ICU and was given the pilot's diary and a flight maintenance document by one of her sons, but not a phone which he had asked if he could take as well. He said he left the ICU and rang Wright to report he had seen Mr Robinson, who was "not in a good way". When he told him he had Mr Robinson's diary Wright got "very irate", Mr Johnston said. "I know when Matt gets irate and he was at 11 out of 10 that day," he said. "He told me that I've done the wrong thing and I need to get it back up to Noelene." He said he hung up on Wright and called Ms Chellingworth and arranged to return the diary straight away. But Mr Gullaci put it to Mr Johnston he was lying and had in fact been asked by Wright to collect Mr Robinson's pilot logbook, a maintenance release form and his phone. He said the evidence of Ms Chellingworth and her sons was that she called Mr Johnston and demanded he return the diary, which he did. "Are you still prepared to tell lies for Mr Wright? Mr Gullaci said. "I have not lied," Mr Johnston replied. Mr Gullaci accused Mr Johnston of wanting to protect Wright at any cost and had been asked by the TV star to fetch the phone so he could delete and hide flying hour entries. Mr Johnston denied that, saying, "I'm telling you the truth". The jury heard after returning the diary to Ms Chellingworth he took the crashed chopper's maintenance release to Wright in Darwin. The court earlier was told Wright offered $10,000 to Mr Robinson's family but they had declined the offer. Ms Chellingworth was questioned about her diary entries in the weeks after the crash, agreeing she had recorded Wright offering her the $10,000 to "tide her over" and pay bills. "We told him we didn't want it," she said. One of her diary entries made when she was with her son in Royal Brisbane Hospital read: "Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Sebastian to put hours on his helicopter". Senior defence counsel David Edwardson KC put it to Ms Chellingworth she had added diary entries to support her claims in court, which she denied. She disagreed with Mr Edwardson's accusation she falsely alleged Wright had wanted Mr Robinson to transfer flying hours from the crashed chopper onto the pilot's helicopter. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for the crash, Mr Wilson's death or Mr Robinson's injuries. A witness has been accused of lying to protect reality TV star Matt Wright from accusations he tried to cover up evidence following a fatal helicopter crash. The Outback Wrangler star is on trial in Darwin Supreme Court having pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The charges follow a crash in February 2022 that killed Wright's friend and co-star Chris "Willow" Wilson on a crocodile-egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Pilot Sebastian Robinson, 32, was left a paraplegic. Prosecutors allege Wright was worried investigators would learn his choppers' flying-hour meters were regularly disconnected to extend flying hours beyond official thresholds and that paperwork was falsified. In court on Wednesday Tim Johnston, a manager at Wright's company Helibrook, was accused by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC of lying about a visit he made to Mr Robinson in hospital days after the crash. Mr Johnston earlier told the jury he had been asked by Wright's friend Jai Tomlinson to pick up items from Mr Robinson's family at the hospital but he had not been told what they were. Mr Johnston met Mr Robinson's mother, Noelene Chellingworth, in ICU and was given the pilot's diary and a flight maintenance document by one of her sons, but not a phone which he had asked if he could take as well. He said he left the ICU and rang Wright to report he had seen Mr Robinson, who was "not in a good way". When he told him he had Mr Robinson's diary Wright got "very irate", Mr Johnston said. "I know when Matt gets irate and he was at 11 out of 10 that day," he said. "He told me that I've done the wrong thing and I need to get it back up to Noelene." He said he hung up on Wright and called Ms Chellingworth and arranged to return the diary straight away. But Mr Gullaci put it to Mr Johnston he was lying and had in fact been asked by Wright to collect Mr Robinson's pilot logbook, a maintenance release form and his phone. He said the evidence of Ms Chellingworth and her sons was that she called Mr Johnston and demanded he return the diary, which he did. "Are you still prepared to tell lies for Mr Wright? Mr Gullaci said. "I have not lied," Mr Johnston replied. Mr Gullaci accused Mr Johnston of wanting to protect Wright at any cost and had been asked by the TV star to fetch the phone so he could delete and hide flying hour entries. Mr Johnston denied that, saying, "I'm telling you the truth". The jury heard after returning the diary to Ms Chellingworth he took the crashed chopper's maintenance release to Wright in Darwin. The court earlier was told Wright offered $10,000 to Mr Robinson's family but they had declined the offer. Ms Chellingworth was questioned about her diary entries in the weeks after the crash, agreeing she had recorded Wright offering her the $10,000 to "tide her over" and pay bills. "We told him we didn't want it," she said. One of her diary entries made when she was with her son in Royal Brisbane Hospital read: "Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Sebastian to put hours on his helicopter". Senior defence counsel David Edwardson KC put it to Ms Chellingworth she had added diary entries to support her claims in court, which she denied. She disagreed with Mr Edwardson's accusation she falsely alleged Wright had wanted Mr Robinson to transfer flying hours from the crashed chopper onto the pilot's helicopter. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for the crash, Mr Wilson's death or Mr Robinson's injuries. A witness has been accused of lying to protect reality TV star Matt Wright from accusations he tried to cover up evidence following a fatal helicopter crash. The Outback Wrangler star is on trial in Darwin Supreme Court having pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The charges follow a crash in February 2022 that killed Wright's friend and co-star Chris "Willow" Wilson on a crocodile-egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Pilot Sebastian Robinson, 32, was left a paraplegic. Prosecutors allege Wright was worried investigators would learn his choppers' flying-hour meters were regularly disconnected to extend flying hours beyond official thresholds and that paperwork was falsified. In court on Wednesday Tim Johnston, a manager at Wright's company Helibrook, was accused by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC of lying about a visit he made to Mr Robinson in hospital days after the crash. Mr Johnston earlier told the jury he had been asked by Wright's friend Jai Tomlinson to pick up items from Mr Robinson's family at the hospital but he had not been told what they were. Mr Johnston met Mr Robinson's mother, Noelene Chellingworth, in ICU and was given the pilot's diary and a flight maintenance document by one of her sons, but not a phone which he had asked if he could take as well. He said he left the ICU and rang Wright to report he had seen Mr Robinson, who was "not in a good way". When he told him he had Mr Robinson's diary Wright got "very irate", Mr Johnston said. "I know when Matt gets irate and he was at 11 out of 10 that day," he said. "He told me that I've done the wrong thing and I need to get it back up to Noelene." He said he hung up on Wright and called Ms Chellingworth and arranged to return the diary straight away. But Mr Gullaci put it to Mr Johnston he was lying and had in fact been asked by Wright to collect Mr Robinson's pilot logbook, a maintenance release form and his phone. He said the evidence of Ms Chellingworth and her sons was that she called Mr Johnston and demanded he return the diary, which he did. "Are you still prepared to tell lies for Mr Wright? Mr Gullaci said. "I have not lied," Mr Johnston replied. Mr Gullaci accused Mr Johnston of wanting to protect Wright at any cost and had been asked by the TV star to fetch the phone so he could delete and hide flying hour entries. Mr Johnston denied that, saying, "I'm telling you the truth". The jury heard after returning the diary to Ms Chellingworth he took the crashed chopper's maintenance release to Wright in Darwin. The court earlier was told Wright offered $10,000 to Mr Robinson's family but they had declined the offer. Ms Chellingworth was questioned about her diary entries in the weeks after the crash, agreeing she had recorded Wright offering her the $10,000 to "tide her over" and pay bills. "We told him we didn't want it," she said. One of her diary entries made when she was with her son in Royal Brisbane Hospital read: "Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Sebastian to put hours on his helicopter". Senior defence counsel David Edwardson KC put it to Ms Chellingworth she had added diary entries to support her claims in court, which she denied. She disagreed with Mr Edwardson's accusation she falsely alleged Wright had wanted Mr Robinson to transfer flying hours from the crashed chopper onto the pilot's helicopter. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for the crash, Mr Wilson's death or Mr Robinson's injuries. A witness has been accused of lying to protect reality TV star Matt Wright from accusations he tried to cover up evidence following a fatal helicopter crash. The Outback Wrangler star is on trial in Darwin Supreme Court having pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The charges follow a crash in February 2022 that killed Wright's friend and co-star Chris "Willow" Wilson on a crocodile-egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Pilot Sebastian Robinson, 32, was left a paraplegic. Prosecutors allege Wright was worried investigators would learn his choppers' flying-hour meters were regularly disconnected to extend flying hours beyond official thresholds and that paperwork was falsified. In court on Wednesday Tim Johnston, a manager at Wright's company Helibrook, was accused by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC of lying about a visit he made to Mr Robinson in hospital days after the crash. Mr Johnston earlier told the jury he had been asked by Wright's friend Jai Tomlinson to pick up items from Mr Robinson's family at the hospital but he had not been told what they were. Mr Johnston met Mr Robinson's mother, Noelene Chellingworth, in ICU and was given the pilot's diary and a flight maintenance document by one of her sons, but not a phone which he had asked if he could take as well. He said he left the ICU and rang Wright to report he had seen Mr Robinson, who was "not in a good way". When he told him he had Mr Robinson's diary Wright got "very irate", Mr Johnston said. "I know when Matt gets irate and he was at 11 out of 10 that day," he said. "He told me that I've done the wrong thing and I need to get it back up to Noelene." He said he hung up on Wright and called Ms Chellingworth and arranged to return the diary straight away. But Mr Gullaci put it to Mr Johnston he was lying and had in fact been asked by Wright to collect Mr Robinson's pilot logbook, a maintenance release form and his phone. He said the evidence of Ms Chellingworth and her sons was that she called Mr Johnston and demanded he return the diary, which he did. "Are you still prepared to tell lies for Mr Wright? Mr Gullaci said. "I have not lied," Mr Johnston replied. Mr Gullaci accused Mr Johnston of wanting to protect Wright at any cost and had been asked by the TV star to fetch the phone so he could delete and hide flying hour entries. Mr Johnston denied that, saying, "I'm telling you the truth". The jury heard after returning the diary to Ms Chellingworth he took the crashed chopper's maintenance release to Wright in Darwin. The court earlier was told Wright offered $10,000 to Mr Robinson's family but they had declined the offer. Ms Chellingworth was questioned about her diary entries in the weeks after the crash, agreeing she had recorded Wright offering her the $10,000 to "tide her over" and pay bills. "We told him we didn't want it," she said. One of her diary entries made when she was with her son in Royal Brisbane Hospital read: "Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Sebastian to put hours on his helicopter". Senior defence counsel David Edwardson KC put it to Ms Chellingworth she had added diary entries to support her claims in court, which she denied. She disagreed with Mr Edwardson's accusation she falsely alleged Wright had wanted Mr Robinson to transfer flying hours from the crashed chopper onto the pilot's helicopter. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for the crash, Mr Wilson's death or Mr Robinson's injuries.
7NEWS
14 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright ‘offered money' to injured pilot's family after fatal chopper crash in NT
Reality TV star Matt Wright offered $10,000 to the family of a helicopter pilot badly injured in a fatal crash but it was declined, a jury has heard. The Outback Wrangler star is on trial in Darwin Supreme Court having pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The charges follow a helicopter crash in February 2022 that killed Wright's friend and co-star Chris 'Willow' Wilson on a crocodile-egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory 's Arnhem Land. Pilot Sebastian Robinson, 32, was left a paraplegic after the crash. On Wednesday his mother, Noelene Chellingworth, was questioned about her diary entries in the weeks after the crash, agreeing she had recorded Wright had offered her $10,000 to 'tide her over' and pay bills. 'We told him we didn't want it,' she said under questioning by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC. Chellingworth told the court she had met with a lawyer in March 2022 to discuss whether her son could sue for negligence and explored claiming workers' compensation. She agreed the legal advice was that Robinson was an independent contractor so making a claim as a direct employee was not an option. One of her diary entries made when she was with her son in Royal Brisbane Hospital read: 'Matt Wright came in today and tried to persuade Sebastian to put hours on his helicopter'. Wright has been accused of trying to get Robinson to fake flying-hour records because he was concerned crash investigators would find out he and his pilots had disconnected flight-time meters and faked paperwork. Senior defence counsel David Edwardson KC put it to Chellingworth she had added diary entries to support her claims in court, which she denied. She disagreed with Edwardson's accusation she falsely alleged Wright had wanted Robinson to transfer flying hours from the crashed chopper onto the pilot's helicopter. Under questioning from Gullaci, Chellingworth agreed she was very concerned her son might not walk or work again and explored legal options for compensation. 'He wasn't going to be dropped in on a wheelchair to collect eggs was he?' Gullaci said, referring to egg collectors being slung on a line under a helicopter to be dropped onto crocodile nests. Chellingworth tearfully told the court in the weeks after the crash she was devastated, and very worried about her son and his mental state. She said Robinson had a paraplegic uncle he was a carer for 'so he knew what he was in for'. The jury has heard Wright was unvaccinated against COVID so at the time of the crash could not work in Arnhem Land because of virus restrictions. That meant Robinson, who could sling collectors under a chopper, was 'always under pressure from Matt Wright,' Chellingworth said. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for the crash, Wilson's death or Robinson's injuries.
