THERE is no organised criminal element in the Rebels outlaw motorcycle club, its
national president says, and the police have overstated the arrest figures in a
recent crackdown on the organisation.
In a rare move, Rebels head Alex Vella has called an emergency press conference at the club's main clubhouse at Bringelly, in Sydney's southwest.
The club is outraged over figures published this week by the Attero taskforce, comprising 14 law enforcement agencies across Australia.
Attero kicked off last February and announced this week its operations had resulted in more than 330 arrests, leading to more than 500 charges being laid against Rebels members.
"My lawyers tell me it was only 77 of them (arrested)," Mr Vella said on Saturday.
He also said most of the offences were minor traffic violations.
There were no organised criminal operations within the club, Mr Vella said, but individual members had been known to break the law.
..."I didn't say we we squeaky clean," he said.
"In every family you've got a black sheep."
Police had been targeting the Rebels for the past the three years, he said, and the club expected a backlash from Saturday's media conference.
"I can assure you, in the weeks to come, we're going to pay for this," Mr Vella said.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/bikies-say-arrest-figures-exaggerated/story-fn3dxiwe-1226514204180
In a rare move, Rebels head Alex Vella has called an emergency press conference at the club's main clubhouse at Bringelly, in Sydney's southwest.
The club is outraged over figures published this week by the Attero taskforce, comprising 14 law enforcement agencies across Australia.
Attero kicked off last February and announced this week its operations had resulted in more than 330 arrests, leading to more than 500 charges being laid against Rebels members.
"My lawyers tell me it was only 77 of them (arrested)," Mr Vella said on Saturday.
He also said most of the offences were minor traffic violations.
There were no organised criminal operations within the club, Mr Vella said, but individual members had been known to break the law.
..."I didn't say we we squeaky clean," he said.
"In every family you've got a black sheep."
Police had been targeting the Rebels for the past the three years, he said, and the club expected a backlash from Saturday's media conference.
"I can assure you, in the weeks to come, we're going to pay for this," Mr Vella said.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/bikies-say-arrest-figures-exaggerated/story-fn3dxiwe-1226514204180
