Alleged Comanchero nominee Chidi Okwechime raped woman as she cried 'hysterically': police

Chidi Chike Okwechime, 33, denied the allegations as he was granted strict bail in the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

Police documents tendered to the court reveal Mr Okwechime met the alleged victim at Kokomo's in Civic early on Sunday morning.

Investigators allege the pair snorted cocaine in the toilets before heading to the nearby Fiction nightclub, though Mr Okwechime's lawyer said he denied any drug use.

According to police, the unemployed 33-year-old father eventually invited the woman to a party at the home of a Comanchero bikie, and they travelled there together.

Inside the Coombs apartment, Mr Okwechime allegedly began kissing the woman despite her pulling away and repeatedly saying, "Stop, I don't want this."

He is accused of then raping the woman, with police saying she "began crying hysterically".

In response to the tears, Mr Okwechime allegedly placed both his hands around the woman's neck and applied pressure while saying: "I hate you telling me to stop."

The woman told police she said words to the effect of: "Stop, you're killing me. I can't breathe."

Investigators claim Mr Okwechime eventually let go of the woman, who ran to a nearby townhouse and spoke to a man who called police.

The woman was subsequently taken to Canberra Hospital, where a doctor reported finding "bruising [that] supports the allegation of someone reporting non-consensual sex".

Mr Okwechime was arrested at his Conder home on Tuesday afternoon.

Police say the bikie was there at the time, and that he told officers "they were just talking about this and they thought this was going to happen".

When Mr Okwechime appeared in court on Wednesday, he pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual intercourse without consent, as well as single counts of common assault and choking, suffocating or strangling a person.

Defence lawyer Adrian McKenna described the allegations as "quite nasty", but said his client "absolutely denies engaging in any criminal behaviour".

Mr McKenna told the court the case would be "largely word-on-word", and Mr Okwechime would perhaps spend "nine-odd months" in custody awaiting trial if he was refused bail.

The lawyer said the bruises observed on the alleged victim's neck were "like a hickie" and did not resemble an injury consistent with choking.

Mr McKenna also said it was unclear whether the bikie and another woman, who were in the apartment at the relevant time, had heard anything that resembled "hysterical crying".

He proposed a lengthy list of strict bail conditions, including a $5000 cash surety for compliance.

Prosecutor Katrina Marson opposed bail on several grounds, however, telling the court "the motivation to abscond is high".

She cited the lengthy criminal record of Mr Okwechime, who was on parole and bail at the time of the alleged offending, saying his history demonstrated "a preparedness to arm himself" and use violence to further his interests.

"Perhaps his interests have never been so desperate as they are ... in the face of serious charges," she told the court.

Ms Marson also said bikie gangs were known to protect the interests of their own.

She relied on a police bail consideration form, which said: "The victim and her family are fearful of being intimidated or threatened due to the defendant being a nominee of the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang."

She also argued that Mr Okwechime knew the alleged victim's address, though Mr McKenna said the 33-year-old had "no clue" what it was.

Magistrate James Lawton ultimately decided to grant bail, "with some hesitation".

He said the conditions put forward seemed to ameliorate any risks, warning Mr Okwechime that any contraventions "would not be looked upon favourably".

Mr Lawton said in particular that if Mr Okwechime breached conditions banning him from any contact with the alleged victim or the bikie, he would probably be remanded in custody until the case was finalised.

Mr Okwechime is due to appear in court again on July 27.

A senior member of the Comanchero contacted The Canberra Times to deny that Mr Okwechime was, or had ever been, a nominee for membership.

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