OFF THE WIRE
An undercover police operation has resulted in a crackdown on gangs nationwide - including one arrest in Napier.
Members and associates of the Hells Angels Motorcycle gang from Auckland, New Plymouth, Napier, Nelson and the Western Bay of Plenty were arrested in the blitz that has been more than two years in the making.
Nine men were arrested on firearms charges in relation to alleged illegal hunting in state forests without permits and without firearms licences over the past year.
Six guns were seized as a result of search warrants that were executed simultaneously at several properties on Wednesday morning.
Five of the nine men arrested are Hells Angels members.
The man arrested in Napier is understood to have been an associate of the bikie gang - the charges he faces were not available.
The arrests were the result of a joint operation between New Zealand Police and the OFCANZ (Organised and Financial Crime Agency New Zealand).
Detective Inspector Grant Wormald, of OFCANZ, said the operation continued its work to target illegal gang activity, with arrests in Auckland, New Plymouth, Napier, Nelson and the Western Bay of Plenty.
The men face charges ranging from intentional damage, possession and supply of methamphetamine to robbery, burglary and extortion.
Tauranga police were this morning unable to provide information detailing how many of the arrests were made locally, or what charges those local people faced.
Mr Wormald said: "Our goal is to investigate the crimes they are committing and disrupt their activities to the extent that it's very hard for them to operate at all." APNZ
http://www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/news/arrests-but-blitz-on-gangs-goes-on/1161748/
