Tactical unit made up of 80 police officers hailed as ‘one of the most significant moves against organised crime in the history of Victoria Police’

Victoria Police’s VIPER taskforce has arrested more than 300 people and seized 60 guns in its first year of operation targeting organised crime gangs.

Sixty guns have been taken off the state’s streets by Victoria Police’s VIPER taskforce since the serious organised crime busting squad was formed a year ago, it can be revealed.

The unique tactical unit – made up of 80 police officers from a wide range of specialist roles – is being hailed as “one of the most significant moves against organised crime in the history of Victoria Police.”

VIPER has also arrested 342 people, laid 1372 charges, seized $1.4m in cash and hundreds of imitation firearms and weapons in its first year of operation.

It has also conducted 560 Firearm Prohibition Order searches and dished out a further 37 to those suspected of possessing guns.

VIPER has arrested 342 people, laid 1372 charges and seized $1.4m in cash. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Acting Deputy Commissioner Bob Hill said VIPER was now “fundamental” to tackling crime in Victoria.

“This has been one of the most significant moves against organised crime syndicates in the history of Victoria Police and the results speak for themselves,” he said.

“VIPER is now a fundamental part of our business model to tackle serious and organised crime.”

He added: “The VIPER model is agile and dynamic – it involves the deployment of a broad range of specialist policing units, operating alongside one another to clinically target known criminal groups.

Acting Deputy Commissioner Bob Hill says VIPER is ‘a fundamental part of our business model to tackle serious and organised crime’. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

”That is the beauty of VIPER – (we) identify every opportunity to target criminals through a variety of investigative options.”

Highlights of the taskforce’s first year of work includes:

• Busting a steroid trafficking operation using the mail system. A sophisticated clandestine laboratory was raided where in excess of 80kg of liquid, powders and chemicals – with an estimated street value of $500,000 – was seized.

• Eight offenders were arrested and 135kg of cannabis – with a street value of $700,000 – and more than $200,000 in cash were seized after investigating an Albanian crime gang.

• An investigation into an Asian organised crime gang resulted in the seizure of drugs, imitation firearms, $10,000 in cash and several prohibited weapons.

VIPER was unveiled on 4 July last year and boasts the flexibility to be sent anywhere in the state at short notice. In that time, it has conducted more than 80 regional jobs.

“We know that the presence of VIPER in regional areas has led to a change in the mindset of local criminals who previously thought they were out of reach of our specialist police units,” Mr Hill said.

“Our regional police colleagues are now regularly supported by the VIPER Taskforce to disrupt and deter criminal activity.”

He added: “Over the past 12-months, the VIPER Taskforce has deployed to all parts of metropolitan Melbourne and rural Victoria where our members are regularly being told by criminal targets, ‘We were wondering when you might show up.’”