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Gunmen targeted a Māngere property, home to the mother of an alleged gang boss.
The shooting came after a post-funeral Rebels ride through the territory of another gang.
It could inflame tensions between the two rival motorcycle gangs.
The property targeted by gunmen in a drive-by shooting in Māngere is home to the mother of an alleged Auckland gang boss, in an attack which could ignite tensions in the criminal underworld.
Saturday night’s shooting came after a provocative ride by the Rebels Motorcycle Club through theHead Hunters heartland in East Auckland following the tangi of slain young Rebel, Texas Jack Doctor.
A patched member of the Head Hunters has been charged with murder over the fatal shooting.
Police investigating the death of Texas Doctor have tried to downplay the tensions between the two gangs, as the shooting was the latest in an alleged tit-for-tat feud between members of individual families.
Nevertheless, the shooting on Saturday night could inflame the tensions between the two rival motorcycle gangs.
The Herald can reveal the property in Outrigger Pl sprayed with gunfire shortly before 9.30pm on Saturday is home to the mother of Mace Raymond Sitope, aka Ray Elise, and several other relatives who were home during the shooting but escaped injury.
Elise is the influential alleged leader of the Rebels MC Māngere chapter. Well over a dozen rounds clattered into the home and it is believed there was more than one shooter.
Elise, who grew up in Māngere before moving to Australia, rose to the top ranks of Australia’s biggest bikie gang to become the boss of the Rebels MC in Victoria.
He is known for an assertive leadership style and a refusal to back down in keeping with his background in the Melbourne underworld.
Elise was deported back to New Zealand under the controversial ‘501′ legislation, where the Rebels chapter he is reputed to control became embroiled in a violent tit-for-tat with the King Cobras for control of Māngere, characterised by shootings and firebombings.
Later that year he went viral in France for his raucous celebration following the All Black’s quarter-final triumph over Ireland at Stade de France. He was able to attend the game after defeating a legal bid by Corrections to prevent him from travelling overseas.
Mace Raymond Sitope aka Ray Elise leaves the Manukau District Court after beating two charges in early 2023. Photo / Jason Oxenham
No one was injured when the shooters sprayed bullets into the Outrigger Pl home and a car parked outside.
Neighbours in the cul-de-sac say the attack by multiple gunmen from inside a four-wheel-drive has left them fearful and wanting to leave the area.
Police have not arrested anyone for the shooting.
Elise made a brief appearance in the Manukau District Court in 2023. He has hit the headlines several times since arriving back in his hometown. Photo / Jason Oxenham
A week earlier, patched Rebels MC member Texas Jack Doctor, 22, was shot dead in his car in Mt Wellington’s Penrose Rd. Five days later, a 23-year-old patched member of the Head Hunters handed himself in at College Hill police station in central Auckland.
He was charged with murdering Doctor and possessing a pistol. The accused was granted interim name suppression before he was remanded in custody without plea to the Auckland High Court.
At the time, Detective Inspector Chris Allan said police did not believe the shooting was the result of gang tensions between the Head Hunters and Rebels.
He alluded to a years-long beef between the Doctors and another family in their East Auckland suburb. a feud which saw his father, also called Texas Doctor, shot in his driveway.
“While both the offender and the victim are members of separate gangs, we want to assure the public that what has transpired related to an ongoing dispute between individual members of two families,” Allan said.
Doctor was farewelled at a tangi on Saturday.
After the service, a large contingent of Rebels MC members rode their Harleys through East Auckland including Panmure and Glen Innes, the traditional heartland of the Head Hunters where the gang emerged nearly six decades ago.
It’s understood the motorcycle convoy would have been viewed by the Head Hunters as a provocative move by the Rebels, in keeping with the bullish approach of Elise since his return to Auckland.
Just hours later, the home of Elise’s mother in Mangere was fired upon.
The shooting of Texas Doctor, and the subsequent posturing by both gangs, comes 12 months after the death of Head Hunters East member Charles Pongi in Pt England.
He was fatally shot during a mass fight between people linked to the Head Hunters, Rebels and Crips. Four people are jointly charged with Pongi’s murder.
Texas Jack Doctor (inset) and the scene outside the Puffing Kiwi vape shop on Penrose Rd, Mt Wellington where the fatal shooting took place The car with the broken window has been the focus of the investigation. Photo / Isaac Davison
Gunshots and screeching tyres
Saturday’s drive-by is the latest in a spate of similar shootings across South Auckland in recent weeks. Shooting up homes is a favoured tactic for gangs in conflict in New Zealand and such attacks have characterised numerous gang feuds in the city in recent years.
A neighbour who did not want to be named described hearing a volley of bangs on Outrigger Pl around 9.30pm on Saturday.
The man believed a four-wheel drive drove into the cul-de-sac, quickly turned around before firing several shots and driving off.
Police at Outrigger Pl, Māngere in Auckland after gunshots were fired at a house overnight. Photo / Alex Burton
Another woman said she was at the front of her house with her children when they heard gunshots go off.
“At first we thought it was fireworks,” she said.
“It was very loud. We could tell it was down our street because it was right there.
“I heard the tyres speeding off after the gunshots.”
Bullets shattered the windows of the state house during the attack on Saturday Night. Photo / Alex Burton
One woman arrived back at Outrigger Pl after finishing work at 11pm but was unable to return to her home for 30 minutes because police had taped off the entrance to the road.
“I called my husband and told him I was safe. I had to park down the road and wait.”
She said her family no longer feel safe living on the road.
“My daughter said she heard three strong bangs and didn’t know where they were coming from.”
