Drugs spark turf war'
A turf war over illegal drug distribution rights is
said to have led to a shot being fired in a Rokeby Road, Subiaco, nightclub
early last Sunday.
A witness said that an argument between two groups of
men over who controlled the supply of party drugs at another Subiaco night
spot led to the incident.
Another man said the local drug market was very
lucrative because Perth prices of drugs such as ecstasy, rock
(methamphetamine) and cocaine were double the prices of equivalent drugs in
Sydney and Melbourne nightclubs.
A patron of the Red Sea nightclub, which is upstairs
opposite the Subiaco Hotel, said that there was a heated argument between
two groups of "body-builder" type men near the bar around 2am on Sunday.
"These blokes were built like brick outhouses - all
muscle and well over 100 kilograms, mostly wearing tight, white T-shirts,"
the witness said.
A club insider said that another Subiaco night spot
had recently changed hands, and one group had seen this as an opportunity to
muscle in and control the drug distribution there at the expense of the
other dealers.
"Suddenly one man head-butted another man, and it was
on," the witness said.
"Someone picked up a bottle and tried to smash it on
the bar, but it didn't break."
He said the men all locked together and the whole
group was moving around the bar "like a rugby scrum".
"The Red Sea's bouncers came crashing through the
other people in the club and tried to move them out," he said.
Before police arrived the patrons were shepherded out
of a back entrance.
"They wouldn't let us out the front to see what was
going on," said the witness.
As this was happening they heard a shot.
They said some of the participants in the melee ran
out the back entrance, some with blood on their shirts.
Sgt Ray Briggs, of Subiaco police, was on foot patrol
around the corner from the nightclub when he got the call that a shot had
been fired at the Red Sea.
He said an off-duty policeman from the major incident
unit was in the club and tried to break up the fight that erupted between an
Asian gang and three motorcycle gang members.
During the scuffle, a gun was allegedly produced by
one of the Coffin Cheaters members and a single shot was fired into the
ceiling of the club's internal staircase.
The off-duty policemen told Subiaco police no one was
hurt.
When Sgt Briggs arrived the gangs had left the club,
but the off-duty policeman and other police tracked the alleged Coffin
Cheaters gunman to Forrest Street, just behind the nightclub.
Sgt Briggs said the biker was on his own and was not
aggressive to police because he had little hope of escaping the police
entourage that surrounded him.
Alekxander Jovicevic (45) was charged with possession
of a firearm.
Police are making enquiries about the identities of
other gang members.
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