Bikie gang tension may have been behind Mongol shooting at Bulleen

Bloody shootings across Melbourne, including a failed hit on a Mongol bikie where he was shot 10 times in Bulleen, have put police on alert as tensions rise between two gangs. But what is behind it?

Police are monitoring rising tensions between rival bikie gangs as they probe bad blood with the Finks as a possible motive for a failed hit on a Mongol member.

Rocco Curra remains in hospital after being critically wounded by a hail of bullets as he sat in his car at Bourke St, Bulleen, on August 1.

Sources say it was a miracle the 32-year-old survived the ambush, in which about 10 shots were fired at close range.

Victoria Police’s anti-bikie Echo taskforce is investigating the shooting. A BMW getaway car used by the gunmen was found torched nearby.

On social media, Mr Curra proudly proclaims his Mongols membership.

His Instagram handle includes “MFFM”, an acronym for the outlaw motorcycle gang’s motto, “Mongols Forever, Forever Mongols”.

Business records show he has been a director of Bun­doora-based Central Concrete Pumping since 2013.

Mr Curra is a friend of high-profile underworld figure Toby Mitchell, who signed on with the Mongols this year

The Curra shooting came weeks after senior Fink Sione Hokafonu was shot in Melbourne’s southeast.

The Mongols absorbed many members of the Finks in 2013.

Mr Hokafonu, of Sydney, had been at the Fountain Gate Hotel in Narre Warren before being shot at an unknown location and making his own way to hospital.

It is unclear whether that incident was the result of an internal dispute or caused by conflict with another outlaw motorcycle gang (OMCG).

The Finks are said to have been steadily increasing their influence in Victoria.

Their national president, Koshan Radford, has challenged a firearms prohibition order subjecting him and his property to search without warrant.

Police earlier this year released footage of gunmen opening fire on the Frankston home of another senior gang figure, Brett Reker.

Brent James Reker. Picture: Nicole Garmston

The Finks are on the rise. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The moment gunmen opened fire on the home of Finks bikie boss Brent James Reker and set fire to a car outside his house.

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Police declined to speak about specifics of the Curra ­inquiry.

“As part of the investigation, police are looking at whether the shooting is linked to OMCGs. Police are also aware of tensions between a number of OMCGs and are ­actively monitoring these groups,” a spokeswoman said.

The Mongols absorbed many Finks members in 2013 when they arrived in the country from the United States.

But some Finks refused to cross over and there has been animosity at times.

The Finks

The Finks have established a strong presence along the east coast since their formation in South Australia in 1969.

But the Finks only began to make a serious move into Victoria in 2009 after the SA Government launched a crackdown on bikies.

To join you must ride a British or American motorcycle over 650cc, and to become a nominee of the club, the rules state you must join an interstate run and be nominated by a chapter. “Noms” have a fully patched member as a sponsor.

>>READ MORE ABOUT THE FINKS

The Mongols

Their copyrighted patch of a long-haired Mongolian warrior began to replace the Finks’ emblem ‘Bung’ from the cartoon Wizard of Id during a 2013 ‘clean-out’.

Members inked the words Mongols MC to various body parts and decked out the inside of the Port Melbourne clubhouse in their new colours.

The Mongols origins date back to 1969 when Hispanic bikies, refused entry to the Hells Angels because of their race, decided to form their own club.

>>READ MORE ABOUT THE MONGOLS

Anyone with information on the Bulleen shooting can call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit the Crime Stoppers website.

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