Police have issued the first dispersal notice to gang members and associates, three months after new laws bolstered enforcement of offending involving gang members.
As of March 11, 403 charges had been laid for insignia breaches under the new law which came into effect on November 21, 2024.
Over the same period, more than 4000 charges were laid against gang members.
Assistant Commissioner Paul Basham said on Friday afternoon the Waitematā officers reponded to a “firearms event” in Torbay on Auckland’s North Shore.
A report was made about a gun at an address on Toroa St, before offenders left in three vehicles.
“Two vehicles of interest were located entering the Northern Motorway at Oteha Valley Road,” he said.
“Our staff carried out an armed traffic stop on the on-ramp and extracted occupants of both vehicles.”
All six were removed from the vehicle without incident and detained.
Basham said police located a loaded handgun and cannabis after searching one of the vehicles.
A 28-year-old man was charged with firearms offences, and has been remanded in custody to reappear in the North Shore District Court.
An 18-year-old man was summonsed to the North Shore District Court for possessing cannabis.
Basham said a dispersal notice was issued to occupants of both vehicles stopped on the on-ramp.
Three of those were patched members of the Head Hunters motorcycle gang, and others were gang associates.
“While two were charged over the firearms and drug offences, there were four others present when this reckless offending took place.
“The dispersal notice stipulates that they must leave the area immediately and not associate with each other for seven days.”
Under the Gangs Act, it is an offence if any of the group are found to be associating with each other in this period.
Basham said anecdotally, gangs have been forced to re-think their behaviour in public following the new powers coming into force.
“It goes to show that the new tools available to all of our police staff is assisting in holding gangs to account when members, or associates, are committing violent offending.”
