Bikie gang hit in dawn raids

Bikie gang hit in dawn raids
By Christine Caulfield and Mark Buttler
December 17, 2003

FIVE bikies from the notorious Outlaw Motorcycle Club were among nine
men arrested in dawn raids on 15 properties on the Mornington
Peninsula yesterday.

Gang members assaulted reporters and locals were jubilant to hear of
the crackdown.

More than 100 police raided the properties in Hastings, Tootgarook,
Bittern and Tyabb, seizing eight guns, two hydroponic set-ups and
cannabis.

Special operations group officers smashed the gang's fortified
Hastings clubhouse soon after 5am, where they found four shotguns.

Uniformed officers and members of the tactical response, organised
crime and Frankston regional response squads executed warrants on 14
other properties.

The covert Operation Seiba ended a six-month investigation, which was
triggered by allegations members had been involved in gang bashings of
four men.

Acting Superintendent Geoff Newby said club members were believed
responsible for serious assaults and community concern had prompted
the investigation.

"There's no link between any other gang. It's not drug-related. This
group of people have taken a dislike to what people have said and have
taken it upon themselves to hand out their own punishment," he said.

"Once we started we knew, because of the nature of the organisation,
we'd have to put some effort into it because people don't generally
talk."

There were no injuries to police or members of the public. The gang's
clubhouse was damaged.

The Outlaws' headquarters in Glendale Ave was a fortress, with cameras
monitoring the perimeter and a shipping container barrier blocking the
door.

Reporters seeking comment from members yesterday were attacked by a
furious bikie guarding the club. The balaclava-clad man threw rocks
and a hammer at the media.

Guns seized from inside the club during the raids included a .22
calibre gun with its barrel sawn off and a silencer welded to the end.

One Hastings business operator said he and many townsfolk were gleeful
about the raids.

He said locals blamed Outlaws for assaults, threats and standover
tactics in the town.

"Thank you very much, police. It's grouse. It'll give us a bit more
sense of safety," he said.

Brendan Petersen, 30, Bradley Rixon, 39, Leon Murphy, 29, and Michael
Hourigan, 39, all of Hastings, faced the Frankston Magistrates' Court
yesterday.

They were charged with affray, false imprisonment, aggravated burglary
and serious assaults and were remanded in custody to appear at
Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Two men, from Tootgarook and Hastings, were charged and bailed with
cultivating, trafficking and possessing cannabis.

Another two men from Bittern were expected to be charged on summons
with firearms offences and one man was released without charge pending
further investigation.

 

Damn bikies

Conehead

 

How desperate for credibility must you be to call yourself an "Outlaw"???
It's almost like selling the quickest R6 in the country without mentioning any
lap times or the name of the rider.

"Gleeful" ???... damn town must be full of Quakers.

Nev..
'03 ZX12R
'02 CBR1100XX

 

Wait till they all get out on bail and visit every Hastings (about 4)
business operators!

 

There must be something in it... the bike clubs to which I belong don't
have even one property...

Gary

 

We should start up a gang like that. Would be great to have shootouts from
the comfort of our own fortified clubhouse. We could buy no shortage of
skanky biker molls with our drug money. We could cruise in to small towns
and terrorise the locals. What a hoot!

 

We don't need skanky biker molls. We have smack.

 

There is a downside though.

We'd all have to grow our hair and bears long, get heaps of tats, and wear
pudding basin helmets and leather vests.

 

Terrorise them with our dayglo paintjobs and our pink chains?
Clem
[Hell's colour-co-ordinators?]

 

That¹s a downside?

Geez, I'm nearly there!

Hammo

 

"Hamish Alker-Jones" wrote

Just need Kathy to knit you the vest eh?

Theo

 

Yeah, definitely no shortage of the skanky biker molls then!

--
Cheers
Dave (Mojo67)
FZR600 Brisbane
I used to never be able to finish anything but now I

 

I shouldn't've got a haircut!