Large bomb defused outside Sydney pub
14:30 AEST Wed Jul 25 2012
Police with bomb disposal robot (Nine News)
A bomb designed to cause mass destruction has been defused outside a pub in Sydney's west known to be frequented by bikies.
Police were called to The Mill hotel in Milperra at 7.30am (AEST) this morning after an employee discovered a box with wires outside the establishment.
The explosive is believed to have a timing device attached and had the potential to cause catastrophic damage in the area.
Streets around the hotel were shut down as bomb squad officers investigated the package.
Police remain at the scene and have denied earlier reports the device had been declared safe.
It had been reported the hotel was owned by John Ibrahim, but the Australian Hoteliers Association has told Nine News there is no connection to the Ibrahim family.
"The owners have absolutely no involvement with the Ibrahim family,” AHA (NSW) Director of Policing and Membership John Green said.
"At the moment management is assisting police in relation to a suspect device found on the premises."
The hotel was the scene of a bloody shootout in 1984 when rival bikie gangs clashed at a motorcycle swap meet.
Named the Viking Tavern at the time, the shootout — known as the Milperra Massacre — claimed the lives of seven people, including 14-year-old Leanne Walters.
The other six victims included two members of the Bandidos motorcycle gang and four from the Comancheros.
Sources: NSW Police, AHA
