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A new gang is trying to force its way into Wanganui, threatening to raise simmering turf wars to boiling point.
The gang, which police refused to name yesterday, is attempting to snatch a slice of the city's criminal profits, currently fought over by the Mongrel Mob, Black Power and the Hell's Angels.
The group was not involved in the killing of 2-year-old Jhia Te Tua, but its presence is adding more tension to an already tense situation.
"This new group certainly doesn't belong here and they should go back to where they came from," said Wanganui police area commander Inspector Duncan MacLeod.
The gang's first attempts to get established in Wanganui coincided with a sharp rise in violence which has continued over the past 18 months.
Increasingly brutal assaults have spilled over from gang suburbs into the central business district, there have been several drive-by shootings and in one case police say they were shot at.
The incidents prompted them to launch a clampdown and in the past year more than 100 gang members have been arrested for offences from driving to firearms and serious assaults.
There have also been 30 raids on gang premises, allowing police to collect DNA samples for a database.
"We've been bringing more heat on the gangs and you would have thought that the powers [leaders] would realise the way to stop it was not to commit crime. It's not rocket science," Mr MacLeod said.
Despite the clampdown, an argument over turf escalated over the course of last week with several incidents - including one at a Castlecliff Seagulls rugby league match hours before the fatal shooting - involving Jhia's Black Power father Josh and Mongrel Mob members.
Darren Beard, a barman at the Castlecliff Hotel, said the Seagulls' players were in the bar on Saturday night. There was no trouble, except for one Mongrel Mob member who tried to get in but was turned away.
The bar banned all gang colours a year ago, coinciding with the police clampdown, after a catalogue of violent incidents.
Jhia's body was expected to be released by police last night, after a post-mortem examination was conducted in Wellington.
