Eighteen months after a 16-year-old boy was shot in the head following a drive-by shooting in Invercargill - and years of alleged intimidation - at least 18 people linked to the Mongrel Mob are before the courts. Sam Sherwood reports.
A mere 10-minute drive from Gore, a town “world famous” for brown trout fishing and the so-called New Zealand capital of country music, lies Mataura, a small town with a population north of 1600.
Gore earns its alleged reputation for fishing thanks to the Mataura River and its tributaries which “lures fly fishermen worldwide”.
Mataura is also home to the Mongrel Mob, whose large pad is less than 200m from the state highway on Albion St.
The pad has a red fence, red roof and a classic red Ford on a pole with Mongrel Mob Aotearoa on the bonnet along with their rallying cry “Sieg Heil”.
Beyond the fence is a playground for children and even a pig pen.
Step inside the pad and guests will see Mongrel Mob regalia spread across the walls including the various chapters’ patches as well as photos of members and bulldogs.
Last week dozens of police officers travelled to the pad as part of Operation Pakari, an 18-month investigation that police say is the largest operation into serious violence Southland has seen.
At least 18 people which police said had strong links to the gang, including senior members, were arrested facing about 100 charges, including attempted murder.
Shortly after 1am on January 22 last year police were called to reports of a drive-by shooting at a house in Centre St, Invercargill.
The Herald on Sunday understands a 16-year-old boy was shot in the head, and a 17-year-old girl was also shot, suffering serious injuries. The boy, who was critically injured, remarkably survived.
Southland area commander Inspector Mike Bowman told the Herald on Sunday that his immediate concern at the time was regarding potential escalation.
“What are reprisals going to consist of, and how do we keep people safe, our community safe? We just don’t know when the next incident is going to occur by the same offenders or people reacting to that drive-by shooting.
“What’s next? Is it going to get more serious where somebody is actually going to be killed and then we’re looking at homicide inquiries?”
In the following months, there were a number of incidents where people were dropped off at Gore Hospital seriously injured.
A second alleged drive-by shooting followed in June last year on Elizabeth St, Invercargill. This time no one was injured, but police concerns became “elevated”, Bowman said.
He said police believed, “it just shows a pattern of behaviour that’s happening within this group who we suspected were responsible, it showed that we really needed to have a really huge district focus on this group... and try to prevent any further harm happening in the community.”
As area commander, Bowman was aware of the community expectations to hold those responsible to account, while also being realistic of the work required to get the required evidence.
“My big concern was trying to do something proactive . . . From a gang perspective we try to work closely with the Mongrel Mob with our gang liaison officers but also field intelligence officers, just to try to build that rapport where we can try to perhaps build up a relationship and try to deter that type of behaviour and try to work through any issues they might be having. But that can be difficult in itself.
“It’s not all about just policing them, it’s around trying to work with them as well.”
After 18 months of investigating the gang, police searched 20 properties last week, including the Mataura pad, as well as properties in Gore, Invercargill, Dunedin and Hamilton. Arrests were also made in Auckland and Hawke’s Bay.
About 50 staff from across Southland and Southern District assisted with the operation, including the Invercargill and Dunedin-based Armed Offenders Squad, and also North Island-based members of the National Organised Crime Group.
Bowman, who is a born-and-bred Southlander, says the investigation is the biggest operation the district has had in terms of serious violence.
He says the chapter has had a large “negative footprint” in Mataura over the past number of years, adding he believes the Mongrel Mob has “significantly more violence accompanied with it”.
“The Mataura community is a small-ish community . . . Most gang pads are in bigger metropolitan cities whereas this is in a small town and when you look at the size of it, it’s quite a significant footprint in that community.
“I think a lot of their behaviour has been quite overt and intimidating in the community. It is significant in that we are hopefully removing some of that fear that might exist around their presence.”
The message the gang could take from the operation was that the community did not want their presence, and did not want their alleged “illegal activity” impacting their ability to feel safe.
It was mere luck that no one had been killed amid the offending, Bowman said.
“They don’t know what’s behind the walls, you fire a shot and anything could happen... you just don’t know who you’re shooting at in the address. The potential consequences are huge.”
He was “extremely proud” of the work the investigation team had done in the past 18 months, getting to the stage where they could make arrests.
“It was a huge result last week and I think that everyone who worked on it was really pleased to be part of it, to have an impact on making these people accountable and to show the Matuara and wider Southland community that we are there to keep them safe.”
Bowman said the operation had impacted on a “big portion” of the senior leaders in the gang, however, the challenge now was to continue to ensure they’re “actively policed” and do not have a chance to grow.
“We’ve just got to make sure that [those] left behind don’t try to emulate what the previous leaders have done and make sure also that support doesn’t come from further north.
“The challenge for us now is to keep that momentum on the organised crime group.”
As part of the termination of the operation, police also had dedicated teams alongside social agencies to engage with the affected families following the arrests.
The Resilience to Organised Crime in Communities (ROCC) programme was developed to combat organised crime by combining social and economic intervention with “targeted enforcement action”.
Southern Police’s ROCC co-ordinator, acting Inspector Cynthia Fairley, said as the enormity of Operation Pakari unfolded it was recognised there would be a “significant impact” on the families involved, such as access to groceries and other “urgent considerations”.
“While their partners are in custody, some families may struggle and it was important that we address the short-term needs of those affected, as well as capture what longer terms needs they may need help with, e.g., access to other government agencies for support.
“A lot of our whānau living gang-centred lives have a mistrust of agencies and there can be significant barriers – but by working together we may be able to overcome some of these. We are also mindful of the impact on children in households when either parent is absent, so will be attempting to work alongside families and other services to explore what we can support with.”
Fairley’s role was to co-ordinate support and referrals during the operation.
“I believe the families reacted well in engaging with the family liaison officers and are seeking out urgent needs and support. The reaction to this operation is still in its early days but we are reaching out to endeavour to ensure each family is connected with a service provider that meets their needs. We hope they continue to engage with our external partners and service providers.”
She said it was important to ensure those are not involved in offending, but who were impacted as a result, were treated with “humanity and respect”.
“Each whānau deserves support and sometimes they do not know where to go or how to access support. Some whānau may be embarrassed or feel isolated in these circumstances, but we want to reach out and be a connector for them so they can access the services and support they need.”
Gore Mayor Ben Bell said the operation was a “good outcome” for the community.
“I guess the biggest takeaway for me in my role is that those families, and those that get left behind, were taken care of, and that has kind of been the gold-star example and something that hasn’t been done before. I’m impressed with the work they have done.”
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