Australia’s outlaw bikie gangs feel heat from Operation Morpheus

A LIGHT plane, almost 300kg of drugs and $3.6 million in cash have been seized from members of Australia’s outlaw bikie gangs in just one year.

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A LIGHT plane, almost 300kg of drugs and $3.6 million in cash have been seized from members of Australia’s outlaw bikie gangs in just one year.

A police task force has charged 1588 bikies with 3840 charges, ranging from drug crimes to firearm offences and crimes of violence.

Operation Morpheus officers also seized 332 guns from bikies, along with 13,800 rounds of ammunition, and other weapons including crossbows and tasers.

Twenty-three vehicles belonging to bikies were seized, along with 14 motorcycles and the plane.

Federal Justice Minister Michael Keenan said the results proved the success of Operation Morpheus, a joint taskforce of officers from all states and territories, the Australian Crime Commission, Australian Federal Police, Border Force, Australian Taxation Office, corporate watchdog Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the organisation that tracks suspicious financial transactions, AUSTRAL.

“Outlaw motorcycle gangs are well organised, well resourced and nationally co-ordinated,’’ Mr Keenan said.

Minister for Justice and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Counter Terrorism Michael Keenan in his office at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Kym Smith

“The best way to combat them is with the combined efforts of all law enforcement and relevant Commonwealth regulatory agencies.’’

Operation Morpheus rose out of an earlier police operation — the Attero National taskforce — which was set up specifically to target Australia’s largest bikie gang, the Rebels.

Attero officers arrested 3000 Rebels and associates and laid 4200 charges. It was rolled over into Morpheus, and the multi-agency model used to form Morpheus, which started work in early 2015.

Last year, Morpheus officers executed 799 search warrants at bikie homes, clubhouses and offices.

As well as laying criminal charges, Mr Keenan said the taskforce took other action against the bikies, targeting their assets and tax debts.

(It) is also targeting the facilitators of serious and organised crime — for example, the lawyers and accountants who assist (bikies) members to carry out their illegal activities.’’

Police also slapped the bikies with 1886 traffic infringement notices last year.

Mr Keenan said another tactic was to revoke the residency visas of those who had foreign citizenship.

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