Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright Court win

Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright doesn’t have to wear an electronic ankle monitor as part of his bail terms as he faces charges in a helicopter crash that killed his pal.

The high-profile wildlife warrior, 43, has been charged with seven serious offenses after his TV co-star Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson crashed in the Northern Territory and claimed his life.

Mr Wilson was collecting crocodile eggs in a remote area of ​​West Arnhem Land when the Robinson R44 helicopter he was dangling from collided with trees and fell to the ground on February 28 last year.

Wright has since faced a range of charges, including destroying evidence and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

The matter returned to Darwin Local Court on Wednesday, where Wright’s attorney Giles O’Brien-Hartcher fought to have some of the conditions on his client’s bail relaxed.

He also sought to remove nine associates from Wright’s 46-strong non-contact order.

The court heard Wright returned home to the Top End a week ago to head up its tourism and adventure business operations ahead of the upcoming peak season.

Matt Wright (pictured with his wife Kaia) no longer has to wear an electronic ankle monitor after his recent return to the Northern Territory

He has spent the last six months in Queensland with his wife Kaia and their two young children.

The court heard Wright wished to return unhindered to NT, a request the Crown agreed to on the condition that he wear an electronic surveillance device to protect the “sacredness” of the evidence, The Australian reported.

“Protection from witness interference is central to the prosecution that we are pursuing at first instance,” prosecutor Steve Ledek told the court.

Wright’s attorney argued an ankle monitor was a “restriction of liberty that served no purpose” and that his client had no intention of violating the terms.

Judge Richard Wallace agreed.

“It doesn’t seem fair to me to compromise Mr. Wright’s privacy in this way,” he said.

Instead, he ordered Wright to give police 12 hours’ notice before changing his home address.

Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright (pictured in court recently) was recently charged with seven serious offenses in connection with a fatal helicopter crash last February

Wright’s close friend and television co-star Chris “Willow” Wilson (pictured) was killed in a helicopter crash almost a year ago while on a mission to collect crocodile eggs

Wright can now contact four business partners who were previously on the non-contact list.

Five more names are expected to be removed from the non-contact list at the next provisional mention in March.

Wright is accused of attempting to pervert legal process, destroying evidence, fabricating evidence, entering a building or entering a home, making a false statement, and threatening/retaliating to interfere with witnesses in a criminal investigation or trial .

Wright has previously strenuously denied any wrongdoing related to the crash.

It has been exactly one year this month since Chris Wilson’s helicopter crashed into trees and hit the ground during a crocodile egg rescue mission in West Arnhem Land.

He was attached to a leash with a harness so he could harvest eggs from crocodile nests in swampy areas while the helicopter hovered overhead.

Matt Wright (pictured with Ms. Kaia) can also now contact four employees who were previously on a non-contact list

Multiple investigations into what happened before, during and after the fatal helicopter crash are ongoing.

The NT Police investigation is expected to be completed by early March.

Wright and two other men charged in connection with the crash are scheduled to appear in court again on March 8.

Wright became a household name more than a decade ago as the star of the National Geographic Channel series Outback Wrangler, which has since aired in nearly 100 countries.