Gangs in New Zealand

There are numerous gangs in New Zealand, of varying criminality, organisation and ethnicity, including outlaw motorcycle gangs, street gangs and ethnically based gangs. A chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle club was formed in Auckland in 1961, the first Hells Angels chapter outside the US. Soon after, the Mongrel Mob formed in Hastings and Wellington, developing into a predominantly Māori and Pacific Islander gang, and having the largest membership in the country. Through the 1960s and 1970s, other outlaw motorcycle clubs and ethnically based gangs formed, including another predominantly Māori gang, Black Power (not related to the African-American movement), which grew to rival the Mongrel Mob.

Overview

History

The New Zealand Police have distinguished between "New Zealand gangs" with predominantly Maori and Pacific Islander membership, outlaw motorcycle gangs and local street gangs.

New Zealand has had youth and street gangs since the 1950s, according to sociologist Jarrod Gilbert. By the 1970s, established gangs included Black Power, Mongrel Mob, Head Hunters and Stormtroopers. Some had friends in high places, with Prime Minister Robert Muldoon partying at a Black Power pad in 1976 and Mayor of Wellington Michael Fowler stumping bail for seven of them after an altercation with the Mongrel Mob. Organised crime gangs such as those that currently dominate in New Zealand mostly date from the 1970s. The Police named the three most prominent "New Zealand gangs" as Black Power, the Mongrel Mob, and the Nomads, as of 2007. Examples of local street gangs in 2007 were the Junior Don Kings (JDK) and Dope Money Sex (DMS) of Auckland.

'Gangsta' style gangs have been a presence in New Zealand since the early 1990s but individual gangs of this type are typically short lived. New Zealand gangs have generally been heavily influenced by their American counterparts and have remained a significant social problem since 1990. Although Black Power takes its name from the black liberation movement of the same name, in many ways it and similar gangs are much more akin to white American motorcycle gangs such as the Hell's Angels. Since the early 1990s newer gangs have primarily been influenced by African American street gangs such as the Crips and Bloods.

In December 2019, Stuff reported that returning New Zealand deportees from Australia had established local chapters of the Comanchero and Mongols biker gangs in New Zealand. Many of these gang members had been deported under Section 501 of the Australian Migration Act 1958, which has accelerated the deportation of criminal non-residents from Australia since 2015

Gang patches

Some political leaders including the-then Māori Party co-leader Pita Sharples have called for gang patches to be made illegal. In 2009 the Wanganui District Council voted to ban gang patches, but it was overturned following a judicial review instigated by the Hells Angels. The council tried again in 2011, this time restricting the ban to just the central business district, malls and parks. A law banning gang patches from government and public buildings was introduced in 2012 by National Party Member of Parliament (MP) Todd McClay. Police welcomed the law, but critics such as Mana Movement MP Hone Harawira claimed it was racist against Māori. It was passed as the Prohibition of Gang Insignia in Government Premises Act 2013, and has been in force since August 2013.

Incarceration rates

Gang members account for a rapidly increasing proportion of incarcerations in New Zealand. A New Zealand Ministry of Justice study showed that in 1991 just under 80% of prison inmates had no gang history, and just over 90% had no current gang membership. Of the prison population, 4% were members of the Mongrel Mob and 4.3% former members, while 3.6% were current and 3.2% former members of Black Power. No other gang had more than one percent of the prison population. A similar study in 2003 showed that 11.3% of prison inmates were gang members. Of these, 35% were Mongrel Mob and 33% Black Power, with no other individual gang having more than 5% of the imprisoned gang population. As of April 2013, gang members and affiliates account for over 30% of inmates, with over 10% of New Zealand prisoners being Mongrel Mob members.

Gang membership

According to the 2007 book ''Gangs'' by English journalist Ross Kemp, New Zealand had more gangs per head than any other country in the world, with about seventy major gangs and over 4,000 patched membersKemp, p 50 in a population of 4 million people. In 2019 the Police recorded 6,500 patched or prospective gang members in the country, with the ten main gangs being the Head Hunters, Bandidos, Hells Angels, King Cobras, Black Power, Mongrel Mob, Tribesmen, Rebels, Devils Henchmen and Highway 61.

In October 2019, Stuff reported that New Zealand gangs seemed to be recruiting members at a greater rate than the New Zealand Police. Between October 2017 and October 2019, the number of patched gang members and "prospects" had risen by 1,400 to an estimated total of 6,375. By comparison, the number of Police officers during that same period had increased by only 893. Stuff attributed the increase in gang membership to the return of deported "bikie gang" members from Australia, who had been deported under recent Australian anti-bikie gang legislation. In addition, the Mongrel Mob started a female chapter.

By June 2021, there were 8,061 patched gang members on the Police Gang List, a 4,000 increase from 2016. By November 2022, the number of gang members on the Gang Harm Insight Centre's Gang List had risen to 8,357; the highest number ever recorded in New Zealand history. While National Party police spokesperson Mark Mitchell claimed that the Labour Government's alleged "soft on crime" policies had contributed to a 56% increase in gang membership since 2017, Police Minister Chris Hipkins responded that the Police Gang List included people who had left the gangs or who were associates rather than formal gang members.

Prominent gangs

Black Power

Black Power was formed about 1970 in Wellington as the Black Bulls, and its membership is primarily Māori and Pacific Islander. It has been involved with various kinds of crime, particularly drug dealing. Its symbol is the clenched fist of the American black power movement, and their colours are blue and black.

Nomads

In 1977 the Nomads split from Black Power.

Head Hunters MC

The Head Hunters motorcycle club is one of the fastest growing motorcycle clubs in the country. It has chapters in West Auckland, Wellsford, Northland and most recently Wellington and Christchurch after patching over the Epitaph Riders. Its beginning is said to go back to 1967 and has been historically tied to West Auckland although it maintains a presence in Ellerslie through a senior member. In 2011 members of the motorcycle club in Wellington have patched over to become part of the Head Hunters motorcycle club.

King Cobras

The King Cobras are a Central Auckland-based gang with its origins born out of the Polynesian Panthers in the early 1970s whose ranks are predominantly Polynesian but not exclusive of others. Their reputed turf is reported to stretch from the Downtown area to Mangere Papatoetoe and Manurewa. The Cobras also have links and associations with activity in the far north Moerewa Whangarei and North Shore, and an established presence in the Hutt Valley and the Wellington area. The gang is also known to have a presence in Christchurch.

In 2009 it was reported that members of the gang had been involved in a multimillion-dollar methamphetamine drug ring organised within Paremoremo Prison, and previously ran another large drug ring along with the Head Hunters. The Cobras maintained a headquarters in Ponsonby up until August 2011 as they are reported to be shifting premises.

Bandidos MC

In 2012, the notorious worldwide Motorcycle Club known as the Bandidos set up in South Auckland and later established a second chapter in Christchurch. The Bandidos have gone on to establish prospect chapters in Dunedin and Invercargill.

Hells Angels MC

The Hells Angels motorcycle club founded a chapter in Auckland in 1961 and has since taken over gangs in Wanganui. New Zealand had the first chapter of the Hells Angels outside the US.

In 2011 the club made headlines when it tried to register a lottery. It made headlines again in late 2015 when it shutdown Nelson's long-standing Lost Breed MC to stamp its mark on the city.

Highway 61 MC

The Highway 61 motorcycle club was founded in 1968 and was the largest outlaw motorcycle club in New Zealand during the 1980s, 90s up until 2010. It has chapters in Auckland, Hastings, Rotorua, Northland, Wellington and Christchurch, and by 2008 had expanded into Brisbane, Sydney and the Gold Coast in eastern Australia. They are mainly European and Maori in descent.

Mongrel Mob

The Mongrel Mob was formed and organised in Hastings and Wellington in the early 1960s. Originally consisting of Pakeha youth, it became primarily Māori and Pacific Islander, like its Black Power rivals. The gang has been active in organised crime and has been involved in several murders. Its symbol is a bulldog

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