Gold Coast Election 2020: Mudgeeraba MP Ros Bates’ signs targeted by Mexican Hoon Cartel

It was one of the most dramatic videos of 2020 - masked gang members from the so-called ‘Mexican Hoon Cartel’ tearing down campaign signs across the city. RELIVE THE DRAMATIC VIDEO

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IT was one of the most dramatic videos of 2020 - masked gang members from the so-called ‘Mexican Hoon Cartel’ tearing down campaign signs across the city. 

Mudgeeraba MP Ros Bates in October vowed to stand firm against hooning despite her election campaign being smashed by a wave of vandalism from teenage petrol heads linked with the Mexican Hoon Cartel gang.

Videos posted to the gang’s Instagram account at the time showed teens wearing hoodies or balaclavas while they kick, cut and vandalise signs.

Ms Bates appeared to be their main target.

One of the offenders rips down a sign belonging to Southport MP Rob Molhoek.

A sign belonging to Ros Bates is targeted.

WATCH LIVE: BONNEY CANDIDATES FACE OFF IN ELECTION DEBATE

“This criminal destructive behaviour only strengthens my resolve to represent the people of Mudgeeraba who are sick to death of this criminal activity,” Ms Bates told the Bulletin in October.

The LNP frontbencher, who has launched numerous safety campaigns highlighting issues with hooning on hinterland roads, had thousands of dollars worth of election corflutes destroyed.

“These fools, they are so stupid all they are doing is getting me more votes,” she said.

“Because people are ringing my office, they are picking up the broken signs. They are very angry.

“All they are doing is getting me more votes because hooning is the number one concern in my electorate.”

Ms Bates said car enthusiasts linked to established clubs were furious about the sign vandalism and offered their support.

“Legitimate motor enthusiast groups are disgusted with this sort of behaviour,” she said.

As well as vandalising the signs the teens also posted videos doing burnouts on Gold Coast streets.

The Mexican Hoon Cartel first came to prominence in 2018 when police began targeting them.

They were terrorising neighbourhoods with burnouts and driving at high speeds on Gold Coast roads.

EARLIER:

MORE campaign signs have been “slashed and defaced” across the Gold Coast as the state government election fast approaches.

Mudgeeraba LNP MP Ros Bates has shared photos of destroyed campaign signs after she discovered them hacked to pieces on Tuesday morning.

Mudgeeraba MP Ros Bates has had several campaign signs cut up and destroyed. Photo: Supplied

Several signs had Ms Bates’ face cut out. Photo: Supplied

It is the latest in a series of vandalism incidents citywide during the election campaign.

“In my 15 years of campaigning in Mudgeeraba, I’ve never seen an election campaign as destructive as this years’,” Ms Bates said.

“On the street, my signs have been torn down, slashed, and defaced from Mudgeeraba all the way to Numinbah Valley.

“I have lodged a complaint with the police.”

She also took aim at candidates she claimed were putting signs up without permission.

“What we are seeing is candidates who are more interested in plastering their face across the electorate than getting to know the communities that reside behind these fences,” she said.

“I’ve been the patron of most organisations in m electorate and have a relationship with many businesses, which is why I always get permission to put up my signs.

More destroyed signs. Photo: Supplied

“It’s just disgraceful that these grassroots organisations and local businesses have had to deal with candidates putting signs up without their permission.”

THIEF ENTERS WOMAN’S YARD TO STEAL SIGN

A GOLD Coast woman claims a thief targeting an election candidate entered her yard to steal a candidate’s sign.

Anne Doo took to Facebook on Wednesday to warn of “pure vandalism” after someone entered her yard to remove a sign supporting Bonney Labor candidate Ash Borg.

She said all of Mr Borg’s signs near Parkwood Light Rail station has also been taken, leaving his opponent and encumbent MP Sam O’Connor’s signs untouched.

There is no suggestion Mr O’Connor or his supporters are in any way responsible for the theft.

In the comments on the post, Mr O’Connor slammed the thieves and urged those who saw signs stolen or vandalised to report it.

“It’s illegal and no one should be doing it,” he wrote.

“I’ve had mine vandalised and go missing too.

Bonney Labor candidate Ash Borg's campaign signs have been stolen from a yard and a nearby station. Photo: Facebook

“I’ll get the office to call (G:Link) today to let them know it happened and to see if there’s anything they could pass on to the police.

“It’s not me or any of my supporters, I can see why (people) would think that. The Labor candidate very misleadingly said ‘our opponents did this’ in that Facebook post.”

Mr Borg last month shared photos to Facebook of Nazi graffiti on his signs, writing: “It seems our calls to ‘unite and recover’ to keep people safe are just too much for some.

“But when our opponents go low, we go high.”

Mr O’Connor has also been the target of Nazi graffiti earlier this year, after signs depicting him as Adolf Hitler appeared outside his electorate office.

SOUTHPORT MP FORCED TO REPLACE TEN SIGNS

A SERIAL pest who haunts a Gold Coast MP during election campaigns has struck again.

Southport MP Rob Molhoek is furious after having to replace ten of his election signs destroyed after the corflutes were spray painted on fencing in his electorate.

Mr Molhoek believes the person who attacked his signs is the same person who has plagued him for several years.

“Here I go again, replacing signs in Ashmore and Benowa vandalised by the same person in the same places every other election,” he wrote on Facebook.

“Be nice if this person would just come and see me to sort out our differences. Replaced ten signs this evening.”

Residents on his Facebook page have speculated that the offender belongs to the Labor Party.

The Bulletin in a report two months ago revealed Mr Molhoek suspected the offender was an elderly man who held a grudge against him.

Almost a dozen signs were damaged.

Mr Molhoek shared photos of the signs on Facebook.

“This is someone who has a black spray can. He has been doing this for my last three elections,” he said.

“I haven’t been able to catch him. Someone saw an elderly gentleman at a roundabout at night doing it in the last election. If anybody spots him, give us a call.”

Mr Molhoek has had to buy special spray remover at the start of each campaign to tend the damaged signs during the day.

Bonney MP Sam O’Connor has also posted on Facebook after being confronted with his first damaged corflute at Labrador, his photograph covered with black ink.

Sam O’Connor also shared photos of his damaged signs.

Mr O’Connor, typically sans monobrow and moustache.

“Spotted my first bit of campaign graffiti as I made my way through the back of Labrador this arvo. Just a monobrow and moustache,” he wrote.

“Pretty poor effort. No, this is not an invitation to do better.”

Sources from Burleigh Labor candidate Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew’s team have also revealed fans of the former world champion surfer have been stealing his corflutes.

“The surfers put them up in their sharehouses,” the source said.

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