Monday, December 26, 2011
AUSTRALIA - Bikies back ousted Comancheros leader
OFF THE WIRE
Vincenzo Focarelli.
A POWER struggle may erupt in the Comancheros with the national body dumping ex-SA president Vince Focarelli.
The Comancheros raided Focarelli's tattoo parlour, Ink Central, stripping him of all paraphernalia related to the bikie gang just days after a third attempt was made on his life.
It's believed some SA Comancheros, especially former New Boys street gang members, are expected to remain loyal to Focarelli causing fears of a violent blood feud.
Focarelli was the president of the New Boys, but merged his gang with the Comancheros after a series of public attacks during a war with the SA chapter of the Hells Angels. But sources say if Focarelli's comrades decide to leave with their former president, it will not happen without a great deal of violence.
Focarelli has now been expelled from two of the most notorious bikie gangs in the world.
His fallout with senior Hells Angels north crew member Danny Papadopoulos led to two alleged murder attempts and triggered the founding of the New Boys.
The pair were once close - Focarelli was a Hells Angel's prospect under the sponsorship of Papadopolous - but the catalyst that sparked their fallout remains a mystery to all but those closely involved.
Exactly what has caused the Comancheros to exile Focarelli is also not known but the violence has prompted Police Commissioner Mal Hyde to label conflicts between bikie gangs as the highest priority for police.
"Police are particularly concerned about violence in public places and the potential for innocent people to be hurt," he said.
The Comancheros and the Hells Angels have a history of ill-feeling towards each other but they now find themselves with a common enemy. Focarelli recently survived a third attempt on his life after a gunman wounded him in the leg after firing a volley of shots during a midnight ambush at Munno Para West.
Three Comancheros were then fired upon at North Adelaide's Caffe Paesano on Sunday last week, in what police believe was part of a dispute between gangs.
Focarelli is undergoing treatment at the Royal Adelaide Hospital but is expected to be released within days.
