Bikie gang threat
can't be ignored
| October 30th, 2010
REPORTS of the predicted
consolidation and growth of bikie gangs into
super gangs is both frightening and
worrying.
Frightening in
that the potential for criminality of these
outlaw gangs will be greatly multiplied.
Worrying in
that it seems the police and the Government
are doing nothing to prevent the phenomenon.
Last year the
Government went to great lengths to show it
was being proactive in the face of the
danger represented by bikie gangs, forcing
through legislation designed to facilitate
cracking down on this cancer in society.
It hung tough
in the face of opposition by biker groups,
misguided civil libertarians and even the
Opposition LNP.
Attorney-General Cameron Dick said the law
was necessary to prevent Queensland becoming
a safe haven for such gangs.
The law,
passed almost a year ago, cleared the way
for outlaw motorcycle gangs to be declared
criminal organisations -- which they are --
and for members to have their movements
restricted with control orders.
However since
then police and government have sat on their
hands and done nothing.
Consolidation
is a well-documented first step in the
process of super bikie gangs forming.
The phenomenon
of proliferation, expansion and
consolidation was first identified and
studied in the US and Canada in the '70s and
'80s.
The spread of Hells Angles in
that era triggered other gangs to unite to
fight them and soon dozens of gangs merged
into four super gangs -- Hells Angels,
Outlaws, Pagans and Bandidos.
Those super
gangs spread their tentacles to control huge
swathes of territory and in the process
transformed themselves into efficient
producers and distributors of drugs and have
proved almost impervious to legal action to
destroy them.
Police must
act now to prevent this happening in
Queensland.
If, as critics
suggest, the anti-bikie law is flawed and
will not survive being tested in court and
this is why police are not using it, the
time to find out is now, not when the gangs
have had time to become stronger and more
entrenched.
SENIOR Gold Coast
police are bracing for a new wave of bikie
'super clubs' as membership soars and major
gangs move to take over smaller clubs.
An internal police
email from a high-ranking officer leaked to the
Gold Coast Bulletin reveals police have
pinpointed these 'super clubs' as a serious
threat.
Major clubs like
the Hell's Angels, Bandidos, Finks and Black
Uhlans are expected to swallow smaller clubs.
Some members of
the Nomads have already swapped colours to the
much larger Hell's Angels in anticipation of a
potential takeover.
The email also
said some members of the Commancheros and Lone
Wolf gangs in Sydney had joined forces in drug
manufacture and identity theft schemes.
"The major clubs
are growing quickly and it is only a matter of
time before they take over the smaller clubs,"
the officer warned.
"Attempts have
already been made in the past and I believe it
will happen again and more often."
The Nomads were
listed as prime targets for a takeover.
"The Nomads for
example are dysfunctional and lack real
leadership. Some have already seen the light and
swapped colours for the HA's (Hells Angels) and
others may follow in the near future," the email
reads.
"If this occurs,
it may create a number of super clubs and from
that there are increased opportunities for
alliances to be formed.
"It's a bit like Hollywood reflecting real life
where rival sections of the mafia join forces to
create a bigger, stronger organised crime
group."
Despite some
states, including Queensland, moving towards
tough new bikie legislation, membership
continues to grow.
Last week,
Victorian Deputy Commissioner Sir Ken Jones,
revealed the number of fully fledged bikie
members of outlaw motorcycle gangs in Australia
had jumped from 3000 to 4000.
The Gold Coast is
a known hotspot for bikies, with almost a dozen
clubs using it as their base.
So lucrative is
the glitter strip, the gangs agreed to carve up
the region into distinct territories.
The peace has
held, but there have been signs of trouble.
The once-feared
Finks' hold on Surfers Paradise is slipping with
many core members behind bars.
Police are still
probing shots fired into the Bandidos Mermaid
Beach clubhouse in May but admit charges are
'unlikely'.
District Inspector
Jim Keogh conceded bikie numbers were growing
but said the Gold Coast was a stable region.
"You see the
takeovers more with new upspring clubs. Our
clubs have been in place for a long time and are
very traditional geographically and are almost
equal by way of numbers, depending on which
members are in jail."
"There is no room
here -- we don't want any more, we don't even
want the ones we have."
Critics point out
the police will be 'no match' for these super
clubs.