How Operation Ironside thwarted an alleged murder plot involving a machine gun and an ambush on Norwood Parade

Operation Ironside allegedly averted a potential slaughter on The Parade – get the inside story of how police say they thwarted gangsters’ plans to execute a rival.

A cold-blooded alleged plot to assassinate a suspected police informant on a crowded eastern suburbs cafe strip was one of five major incidents thwarted during Australia’s largest covert police sting operation.

Senior police have alleged members of the Comancheros conspired to murder the man by gunning him down with a machinegun on The Parade at Norwood.

According to police, the alleged hit – planned for the day after the Melbourne Cup last year – was to take place after the man, a gang associate, left a cafe where he was to have been lured.

Serious and Organised Crime Branch detectives say they foiled the alleged plot when they discovered the weapon, an Owen machinegun and two full 32-shell magazines, hidden in a park at Rostrevor the day before.

Detectives have arrested and charged five men with conspiracy to murder in connection with the alleged assassination plot.

Police allege this machine gun found hidden in a Rostrevor Park was destined to be used in an assassination. Picture: SA Police

According to police, the alleged hit was thwarted as a direct result of real time information Australian Federal Police provided to SA Police as part of Operation Ironside, under which police had tricked alleged criminals into using an encrypted device named AN0M, which they used to communicate – believing their messages were safe from law enforcement.

Police say the other four incidents involving threats of harm were not as serious, but all involved extreme violence because of inter-gang rivalry or retribution.

AFP Superintendent of Crime Operations in SA Gail McClure said when the discussion about the alleged assassination plot arose, police acted immediately because the attack was imminent.

“We actually identified this threat to life issue on the ANOM platform during the Melbourne Cup. I told my intelligence manager we had to go to SAPOL right now,’’ she said.

“The platform revealed there were members of an OMCG plotting to shoot another male, believing him to be a police informant.

“They made plans to meet at a cafe at Norwood, just as a routine social occasion.”

Police will allege the plan involved stealing a motorbike and placing it at a predetermined location in the eastern suburbs.

“Another member of the group was going to source the weapon, get on the motorbike and be ready for the end of the social meeting at the cafe,’’ she said.

When the intended victim was on his way to his car, the gunman on the motorcycle was allegedly going to intercept him and he would have been gunned down.

The alleged hit was to take place on The Parade, police say. Picture: Morgan Sette

The next day – when the alleged assassination was to occur – police allege the men stole a motorcycle as planned and placed it where planned and it was retrieved by police. Astonishingly, police allege when the accused conspirators could not find it, they stole another motorcycle and put it in the same spot. That one too was retrieved by police – along with a balaclava and gloves under the seat.

“They were going to shoot someone in the streets of Norwood and that could have gone incredibly wrong,’’ Supt McClure alleged.

Serious and Organised Crime Branch officer-in-charge Detective Superintendent Steve Taylor alleged the Owen gun and a petrol can, which he said would have been used to torch the motorcycle, were discovered in a nearby park after its location was revealed on the ANOM platform using a map.

“The threat-to-life issue has been really significant. I have no doubt through the information provided to us and the ongoing activity we have had to introduce has saved lives,’’ he said.

“A machinegun being used in the hands of someone not skilled in using it, the potential for collateral damage was massive,” he said.

“We believe he was targeted because they thought he was a police informant because of the amount of information we were getting from the platform on their activities, but they were dead wrong.’’

A motorcycle that was allegedly to be used in the crime. Picture: SA Police

A petrol can that was found nearby. Picture: SA Police

South Australian and federal police on Monday charged 47 people, seized more than $1.8 million in cash and millions of dollars worth of drugs as Operation Ironside moved into its overt phase.

Detectives have also restrained 23 properties worth more than $11 million, along with 68 vehicles – including luxury Mercedes and Lamborghinis.

Other goods seized included expensive watches, large amounts of Louis Vuitton fashion gear and a number of extensive wine collections – including two full sets of Penfolds Grange worth $400,000 each.

Drugs seized included 6kg of methamphetamines; 10,000 ecstasy tablets, 1.5kg of cocaine and some cannabis.

Over the 18-month duration of the operation, SA police seized 90kg of methamphetamines, 354kg of cannabis, 45 litres of fantasy, 25kg of precursor chemicals, 30 firearms, 10,000 ecstasy tablets and shut down three clandestine laboratories.

One of the laboratories at Morphett Vale was capable of producing 50kg of methamphetamines a week.

While SA Police raided almost 80 properties and arrested and charged 39 people, Australian Federal Police charged another eight people – one a well-known northern suburbs businessman who introduced fellow criminals to the AN0M platform – after raiding more than a dozen properties.

They face charges ranging from manufacturing and trafficking drugs, participating in a criminal organisation, firearms offences and conspiracy to murder.

Along with three significant methamphetamines laboratories, Operation Ironside was directly responsible for a number of significant seizures of guns and drugs last year.

Last month detectives discovered 50kg of methamphetamines hidden in a truck at Port Wakefield that was being shipped from Sydney to Perth.

Although federal police knew precisely where the drugs were concealed, after being stopped the truck was seized and taken to Port Adelaide to be X-rayed to maintain the integrity of ANOM as information source.

Another key seizure came in January last year when detectives found a cache of firearms linked to the Comancheros – including a military Steyr rifle and an AR15 sub-machinegun hidden in a concealed compartment of a Holden utility.

Supt McClure revealed this incident was the catalyst for SAPOL to be informed of Operation Ironside’s existence.

Initially only Supt Taylor and Assistant Commissioner Peter Harvey were aware, but as the volume of work increased a limited number of other officers were confidentially briefed.

Supt Taylor said when he was advised of ANOM he was “hugely impressed’’.

“Because SAPOL and AFP in this state already have an established working relationship, it only enhanced that relationship when we were free to talk about the operational component and how we would move forward with it together,’’ he said.

“I felt somewhat privileged that SAPOL was pulled into this fold to a higher level before some of the other jurisdictions.’’

He said it “was challenging’’ initially keeping the source of such critical information secret – even from his own detectives.

Supt Taylor said Monday’s arrest had crippled the leadership of the Comancheros and severely impacted other organised criminals in SA.

“The impact on local OMCGs and the landscape for organised crime in SA will be enduring; they will be a rudderless group without firm leadership,’’ he said.

Originally published as How Operation Ironside thwarted an alleged murder plot involving a machine gun and an ambush on Norwood Parade