Bikie law war: Police seek to restrict movement as turf battle escalates
POLICE are fighting to use laws that severely restrict the movements of bikies in a bid to end a violent turf war plaguing the Hunter region.
NSW
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POLICE are fighting to use laws that severely restrict the movements of bikies in a bid to end a violent turf war plaguing the Hunter region.
In a state first, NSW Police are seeking to impose serious crime prevention orders on five high-ranking Nomads members — including national president Dylan Britliffe — as they bid to bring peace to the area.
If the orders sought are granted by the courts, the five men will not be allowed to associate with any member of any gang, enter any licensed premises in NSW or travel in vehicles at night for the next 12 months.
They will also not be allowed to use any encrypted communication, such as Snapchat, WhatsApp, Wickr and Hushmail, and will have to surrender their phones and passwords to police whenever requested.
Last week a judge said the orders were “draconian” but top barrister Mark Tedeschi QC, acting on behalf of NSW Police, told a court there was a “severe risk of danger to the public”.
The orders are similar to those police can make against suspected terrorists and they can be imposed on anyone deemed to be “involved in serious criminal activity”, even if they have not been found guilty of any crime.
The police action has been spurred by a spate of public shootings in the Hunter Valley and Newcastle region this year.
More than half a dozen of the attacks have been carried out since January 4 as part of the ongoing feud between the Nomads and Finks motorcycle gangs.
SATURDAY EXTRA: FINKS AND NOMADS TURN REGION INTO BATTLEFIELD
Members have firebombed and shot up the homes of rivals, with one bikie shot in the leg inside his home near Maitland on March 4.
Yesterday Nomads national president Dylan Britliffe and Newcastle City chapter president Bradley Bowtell appeared in the NSW Supreme Court in Sydney to oppose the order, represented by barrister Robert Cavanah.
But the hearing was adjourned because the three other men fighting the police action — Blake Kevin Martin, James Kenneth Quinnell and Kane Benjamin Tamplin — failed to show up.
Mr Tedeschi, acting in his first case since retiring as the state’s senior crown prosecutor, opposed the adjournment. “It is a matter of great urgency — there is a severe risk of danger to the public,” he said.
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Court documents obtained by The Telegraph state police were seeking to take the hard line to “protect the public by preventing, restricting or disrupting involvement of each (of these members) in serious crime-related activities”.
Outside court NSW Police Criminal Groups Commander Detective Superintendent Deb Wallace said the legislation — passed in May 2016 — was “designed for these situations”.
“We’d tried everything. We already had our toolbox — raids, arrests, FPOs, but the violence continued, so we reached out a little further,” Supt Wallace told The Saturday Telegraph.
“It’s an attempt to not only curb violent behaviour, but also to have an impact on the way they’re trying to do business.”
However, the solicitor acting for the men disagreed.
“In our views the orders sought are not in the spirit of the legislators,” lawyer Chris O’Brien said. “On behalf of each of the defendants the orders are opposed. The consequence of the orders being made are so oppressive that it could potential put each of the defendants out of work.”
Since December 2016 police have arrested 134 Finks and Nomads and laid 210 charges as part of Strike Force Batterson.
But after the recent spate of tit-for-tat shootings in the Hunter, Northern Region Commander Assistant Commissioner Max Mitchell has assembled Strike Force Darnay — a team comprised of locally based detectives specifically targeting the ongoing local turf war.
“What we are fearful of — is (the) use of high-powered weapons. It’s pretty easy for high-calibre projectile to pass through the wall of a house. These indiscriminate shots could seriously wound or worse, fatally injure a neighbour, child or other innocent person because of the feud between these gangs,” Mr Mitchell said.
The serious crime prevention legislation has come under intense fire from the NSW Bar Association, The Law Society and Council for Civil Liberties for its potential to interfere with everyday citizens’ civil liberties.
A hearing to determine whether the orders will be imposed is slated for next week.
IF POLICE SUCCEED, BIKIES ...
■ Cannot associate with any member of any gang
■ Cannot enter any licensed premises in NSW
■ Cannot travel in vehicles at night
■ Cannot use encrypted messaging services, such as WhatsApp
■ Will also have to hand over phones and passwords to police when requested
SPECIAL INVESTIGATION
► CHAPTER ONE: Inside the squad that beat Sydney’s gangs
► CHAPTER TWO: The real-life police fight club