Outback Wrangler Matt Wright walks free from prison, misses son’s birth by hours

The Outback Wrangler had no idea what was waiting for him in the darkness. Then he saw his wife walking towards him with a bundle.

Outback Wrangler Matt Wright had no idea his wife Kaia had given birth to their child child until she arrived at the jail at 6am on Monday to pick him up.

The first he knew his son Sterling had entered the world was when he saw the image of Kaia in the darkness walk towards him with a bundle in her arms.

Sources say Wright had been cut off from any form of contact with the outside world since 3pm on Friday, which is standard practice for inmates prior to their release.

Kaia had been booked for induction at the hospital on Monday morning and Wright still assumed he was headed straight for the hosptal upon his release.

Kaia gavebirth on Sunday night.

She is “overjoyed” about the birth of their son Sterling on Mother’s Day but disappointed that her husband wasn’t able to witness his arrival.

Kaia had been fighting “tooth and nail”, pleading with NT authorities to release the reality television star in the week before his official release date of May 11.

The new mum turned down an alternative offer from Corrections which would have allowed Wright to be at the hospital for the birth under escort.

Kaia was 42 weeks pregnant when she gave birth in Darwin Hospital, having her best friend as her support person in Matt’s absence.

Jail sources said Wright was gutted to miss his son’s birth, having had a visit from his wife as recently as Wednesday where he still held out hope for release by just a few days on compassionate grounds.

Wright walked free from Darwin Correctional Centre first thing this morning after serving five months behind bars and headed straight to be with his wife and their newborn baby.

He said he would continue to fight to clear his name.

“I’ve done my time, I’m continuing with my appeal and will keep fighting to bring to light the injustice that’s occurred,” Wright said.

“Finally home with my family after one hell of a fight. Didn’t quite make the birth of our beautiful boy Sterling but Kaia did an incredible job,” he later shared on Instagram alongside a family photo. ️

Matt Wright shared this photo with his wife Kaia, newborn son Sterling and their other two children on Monday morning. Picture: Instagram

It’s been a stressful pregnancy for Kaia Wright who was desperate for her jailed husband Matt to make it out in time for the birth of their third child. Picture: Supplied

Kaia with Daisy and Banjo in the weeks before her due date. Picture: Supplied

Wright was jailed for his actions in the aftermath of a fatal chopper crash that killed his good mate Wilson and severely injured pilot Sebastian Robinson.

Wright was not in the helicopter when it crashed, arriving at the crash site hours later.

Acting Justice Alan Blow sentenced Wright to 10 months in prison, suspended after five, with a two-year good behaviour period after a jury found him guilty of two counts of perverting the course of justice. Wright is appealing the convictions.

Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright arrives at Darwin Airport in November 2022, after an arrest warrant was issued in relation to the deadly helicopter crash in West Arnhem on February 28, 2022. Picture: Sierra Haigh

Matt Wright and his wife Kaia approaching the Supreme Court in Darwin as the jury deliberates. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Kaia was desperately trying to hold out until Monday morning, Wright’s release date, when she would have been 42 weeks pregnant – the longest her care would allow her to go before inducing the birth.

Medical staff were monitoring her closely to make sure the baby was healthy, after she indicated she did not want to be induced any earlier, hanging onto the slim hope that Varley would change his mind or someone in the NT Government would intervene and overrule.

News.com.au understands Wright applied for the seven day early release so he could be home for the birth of the couple’s son but was knocked back by the office of Commissioner Matthew Varley.

Under Northern Territory legislation, specifically section 62 of the Correctional Services Act 2014, the Commissioner of Correctional Services has the discretion to release a prisoner up to seven days before their formal release date.

Instead the Commissioner alerted the Wrights on Monday, May 4 that he would not alter his decision to reject the application for seven-day earlier release.

Matt and Kaia Wright, and their children Banjo and Faith. Picture: Instagram.

Commissioner Varley responded with: “I acknowledge the compassionate grounds that your client has presented in seeking early release from his sentence. However, I do not intend to alter my decision. Mr Wright will be required to serve the full sentence term imposed by the Court, which expires on 11 May 2026”.

“As you are aware, the Correctional Services Act grants me discretionary powers regarding administrative home detention and early release. Therefore, I am not obliged to provide further answers to your questions concerning the reasons for my decisions.”

It is understood Kaia refused an offer by Corrections to facilitate an escorted visit for Wright to be at the hospital for the birth, concerned it would be “leaked to the media”.

“She thought the offer was ridiculous at a woman’s most vulnerable moment and didn’t like the thought of unwanted media attention around Matt in his prison uniform, escorted by prison guards into a very public hospital whilst trying to give birth in privacy.”

The knock back was the third for Wright who is serving a 10-month jail sentence – suspended after five months – for attempting to pervert the course of justice following the 2022 helicopter crash that killed Chris Wilson and severely injured pilot Sebastian Robinson.

News.com.au can reveal Kaia has submitted a complaint to the NT Ombudsman requesting a review of the process, the Commissioner’s discretionary powers and requesting to know why she can be sent on a “wild goose chase”.

Matt and Kaia wright with son Banjo celebrate Daisy’s third birthday Picture: Instagram

It’s not so much that Kaia is upset that Wright wasn’t “signed off” in the end, “it was the way in which the entire matter was dragged out and handled with false hope delivered at every corner”.

It’s reported, following his first rejection of Matt’s early release, the Commissioner sent the following email through “I wish to advise you that I have approved for a new application package to be prepared and submitted for my decision. In doing so, I have taken account of all the material you have sent through including the expected birth of your client’s child. I expect to be in a position to make a decision soon and I will keep you informed.”

Kaia was encouraged to resubmit a request for early release on a second and then third time and repeatedly got her hopes up when there was “never a chance at all, the answer was always going to be no.”

Sources close to her say she was “confused and felt very emotional having to deal with such a rollercoaster whilst pregnant”.

She has also written to the NT Chief Minister and the NT Corrections Minister about the handling of the case.

Prison sources said Wright was even booked in to have an ankle monitor fitted and had his home inspected for suitability for administrative home detention, only to be knocked back in the eleventh hour with limited explanation on two occasions.

Matt, Kaia, Banjo and Dusty. Kaia has just given birth to the couple’s third child. Picture: Instagram

Kai previously told news.com.au she was baffled by the fact that during Matt’s trial the court could be given “bits and pieces of evidence” garnered from the final Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) report but the full report itself, containing all of the forensic evidence relating to the crash, could not be used.

The ATSB is an independent Commonwealth Government Statutory Agency whose job is to conduct independent investigations of transport accidents. ATSB reports are protected by the Transport Safety Investigation Act 2003 which stipulates ATSB reports cannot be tendered in criminal trials.

Kaia called for changes to the law so that when an ATSB report exists it can be used in its entirety in criminal proceedings.

In sentencing Wright, Acting Justice Alan Blow said the evidence of the trial established that the helicopter crashed in remote Arnhem Land during the crocodile egg collecting mission in 2022 because the engine stopped.

Pilot Sebastian Robinson (L) with Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson.

The helicopter carrying Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson crashed in remote west Arnhem Land in February, 2022.

“I am not able to make a finding as to why it stopped,” Acting Justice Blow said, adding that Mr Wilson fell to his death, and the pilot survived but was “catastrophically injured”.

During sentencing submissions in the Darwin Supreme Court, Acting Justice Blow said he was “satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the chopper did not run out of fuel, given the “clear and unshaken evidence” from Tim Luck.

The judge also referred to a photograph taken inside the helicopter about half way from its take off point to Mt Borradaile showing fuel gauges that revealed that each of the two fuel tanks was about three quarters full.

“In my view that’s inconsistent with both tanks becoming empty when it crashed a little later,” the judge said.

Separate to the court proceedings, The ATSB report found the photo showing the fuel gauges indicating “just below three quarters full,” was unreliable.

Wright was desperate to be released from prison for the birrth of the couple’s third child. Picture: Supplied

Kaia Wright with Daisy and Banjo heavily pregnant. Picture: Supplied

In evidence not put before the court, The ATSB report also found that the helicopter was “likely not refuelled at the en route fuel depot, which was about three quarters of the way between the departure location on the outskirts of Darwin and a clearing near King River where the helicopter and crew were to commence crocodile egg collecting”.

The report found the pilot did not identify the reducing fuel state before the helicopter’s engine stopped.

“The pilot released the egg collector above a likely-survivable height, fatally injuring them,” the report found.

“The pilot then completed the autorotation to the ground, but there was insufficient main rotor energy to cushion the landing. This resulted in serious injuries to the pilot and substantial damage to the helicopter.”

The ATSB report states people who attended the site after the crash who reported “no evidence of oil or fuel at the crash site, such as discoloration or glistening that would typically indicate leaks”.

Wilson was killed in the fatal crash.

At least two ATSB investigators confirmed there was no fuel at the crash site as well as other independent people who were engaged by the ATSB to recover the wreck.

Kaia said “it’s crazy” under Australian law the ATSB report could not be used in criminal proceedings.

She said she can’t fathom why the investigation over the past three years has focused on her husband and “not on the crash itself”.

“What was meant to be an investigation into the cause of the crash turned into an investigation into Matt Wright that provided the public with no closure as to the cause,” she claimed.

“What is frustrating is that following the trial we all thought there would be some sort of flow on justice or answers and that an investigation would continue into the crash. And it just does not seem that an investigation is happening.

“It’s not that we want anyone else to suffer. It’s a want for the truth to be out there and for police answers as to why this investigation stopped.

Wright says he wants accountability for Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson’s death. Picture: Instagram

“There are no answers as to what caused that helicopter to crash … no answers from police. Wouldn’t a balanced and rigorous police investigation exhaust all options to get answers?

“First and foremost, wouldn’t the police reference the publicly available 103-page ATSB report and conduct their own investigation based on the extensive evidence already provided?

“All of the information is already there, they just need to follow it up and investigate for themselves – look at everything presented, the forensic evidence, the expert opinions from aviation specialists in Australia and America, consider the statements from all the people who were there that day and involved closely after they crash?”

Kaia said that even once the ATSB report came out there didn’t appear to be the same amount of time and resources spent on investigating the cause of the crash.