Top End operator charged

TOURISM Central Australia Chairman, Patrick Bedford, was arrested in Alice Springs on Wed and has been charged with two counts of “negligently causing serious harm” in relation to a tragic tour bus crash earlier this year (TD 08 Jun).

The incident occurred east of Hermannsburg on Larapinta Drive, involving a 19-passenger bus operated by Bedford’s Emu Run Experience tour company.

The vehicle rolled multiple times in the crash, with one passenger, a 69-year-old man, dying at the scene and five others taken to Alice Springs Hospital for treatment of serious injuries.

A preliminary hearing in Alice Springs Local Court yesterday heard the police prosecutor saying the investigation was ongoing, with the vehicle yet to undergo expert examination and “numerous statements” still to be taken in relation to the crash.

A possible charge of industrial manslaughter could be added, the prosecutor suggested, with a local law enforcement spokesman adding that “police expect additional charges related to the death of a passenger and other injured passengers to be laid at a later time”.

Bedford was not the driver of the bus when it crashed.

His lawyer asked for bail conditions which would allow Bedford to travel overseas for tourism conferences and events in the US and Thailand, with the judge agreeing on the proviso of a $10,000 surety.

Bedford’s Emu Run Experience business has been in operation since 2001, and offers a range of trips departing Ayers Rock and Alice Springs as well as private tours and airport transfers.

The case will return for another hearing on 29 Sep, according to an ABC report.