Matt Wright Outback Wrangler committal hearing: A Current Affair journalist Steve Marshall shoved

An A Current Affair journalist has been manhandled and pushed into a car by a former senator amid a wild media scrum following a high-profile Northern Territory court appearance.

Members of the national press made their way to Darwin this week to cover celebrity crocodile wrangler Matt Wright being committed to stand trial on a charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Wright, 44, is the star of Netflix hit Outback Wrangler.

The charge is related to alleged events following a helicopter crash that killed Wright’s friend and co-star Chris “Willow” Wilson last year.

Wright was not present at the time of the crash and has denied all allegations.

Two of Wright’s co-accused, Michael Burbidge and ex-policeman Neil Mellon, have pleaded guilty to destroying evidence for their role in the incident.

During Thursday morning’s committal proceeding, Wright’s representatives issued a statement acknowledging “one of the seven charges was today committed to trial for next year”.

The other charges against him include one count of intimidating a chopper pilot, one count of destroying evidence, one count of fabricating evidence, two counts of unlawful entry, and one count of making a false declaration.

“The other charges will remain, pending resolution of the charge now before the Supreme Court,” Wright said in a statement.

“I’m hopeful the remaining charges will all be withdrawn once this charge is dealt with next year.”

But it was outside the court where things got truly heated.

Footage from outside court, published by the NT News, shows Mellon running the gauntlet of reporters, flanked by colourful ex-senator Nigel Scullion.

Prickly questions can be heard thrown in his direction.

“You were meant to be upholding the law, why did you break it?” Today show reporter Andrea Crothers asked Mellon.

Steve Marshall from A Current Affair then chimed in with a barrage of his own questions.

“Have you rolled on Matt Wright?” he asked.

“Did you fight the law and the law won?”

The footage appears to show Mr Scullion shoving Marshall, a journalist known for pushing people’s buttons, into the closed door of a car.

Marshall threw his hands up in the air and yelled, “Hey!” as Mr Scullion taunted his reaction to the push.

More Coverage

“Someone died mate,” Marshall yelled twice as Mellon and Mr Scullion got into the vehicle.

Wright, too, made his feelings to the press gathering known, reportedly overheard calling them “f***ing maggots”.

Wright will return to the Supreme Court on January 18.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrGWcp51jrrZ7xKernqqklravucSnq2ispmSwtr7RnqWtZZGbs6K10axmn6GenHqurcagpq2rXZawonnJqKyrpp9iwLWx1Z5kppmiqLWiuMtmqqGnppqxbrvUraqinJViuqLA02auq6GXncG0ecKopKahpKmurXnHnpiroZ6cfK%2Bx1qxkrKyfp8Zwf8Brbm1ulZqyeH2Samubb2Vrr6OxlJ1tm5qVbIB4f8E%3D

ncG1vNJzZmifo5ayb63MrGpnnJmctrWty6ianpmeqL2ir8SsZZynnWS6osDTZq6roZedwW671K2ZmpubYsSzrc2go56qXZi8rrnIrauapF2dsqK%2ByKeeZpldmMKzvsSnq2aZlpuuqr6Mo6auqp6Wuaq%2F02aqrZ2mmnqurdGsn5qknGLAqbvVnptnoKSiuQ%3D%3D