By Christine Rush, Digital Journalist
Comanchero members on trial in Auckland District Court in 2020. Photo: RNZ / Tom Furley
As Canterbury police announce they have arrested every member of the Comancheros's Christchurch chapter in a drug bust, there are signs the gang is growing in power and reach.
An eight-month police investigation, called Operation Avon, alleged the gang organised for drugs and cash to be relayed between Auckland and Christchurch every few weeks.
Detective Inspector Darrin Thomson said police believed $15 million worth of drugs were moved between the North and South Island.
Eighteen men, aged between 18 and 55, were arrested and have appeared in court in Christchurch and Auckland on charges included participating in an organised criminal group, conspiracy to supply methamphetamine, and conspiracy to supply cocaine.
The arrests come as the government continues to push through its controversial anti-gang legislation.
Here's what you need to know.
The Comancheros gang headquarters in Christchurch. Photo: Anna Sargent
Where did the Comancheros come from?
The motorcycle club was founded in Scotland by a biker called William George "Jock" Ross, who named it after the John Wayne cowboy flick and brought it to Sydney when he emigrated in 1968.
From its early days importing amphetamines, the gang were soon involved in cocaine smuggling with links to Middle Eastern organised crime gangs in South-east Sydney.
In recent years, the gang has been associated with a string of brawls, skirmishes and assassinations in the Sydney underworld, which has seen 18 people killed - some in broad daylight.
Motorbike seized as part of Operation Avon's investigation into Christchurch Comanchero members. Photo: Police/supplied
How big are the Comancheros in New Zealand?
The Mongrel Mob and Black Power have historically been the big players in the criminal underworld here, accounting for two-thirds of patched members.
According to Corrections data, they form the largest number of prison inmates, along with the Crips, the Killa Beez and Head Hunters.
Since around 2010, however, they have been joined by the Rebels, the Mongols and the Comancheros - all bikie gangs originating in Australia, and arriving on our shores as 501 deportees.
Since 2015, more than 3000 people have been deported from Australia under the so-called "501" grounds of bad character.
Patched Comanchero members have been linked to various criminal activities in this country, including the illegal trade in firearms, money laundering, drug dealing and the Waikeria Prison riot in 2020.
Pasilika Naufahu during his trial for charges related to drugs and money laundering. Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
Who is the Comancheros boss in New Zealand?
Pasilika Naufahu is the president of the Comanchero Motorcycle Club in New Zealand. He was a sergeant-at-arms for the Comancheros in Australia, before being deported here as a 501 in 2016.
He was arrested in police gang raids in 2019, which also netted more than $3.7 million in assets, including luxury cars, motorbikes, high-end luggage and jewellery.
Naufahu was sentenced to 10 years in prison in February 2021 for participating in an organised criminal group, conspiring to deal in a Class B controlled drug, money laundering, unlawful possession of ammunition and assault.
The Parole Board has twice refused early release for Naufahu because he is still considered too high-risk to be in the community.
How far have they spread?
Deportees under Australia's 501 policy are not just moving into New Zealand.
Earlier this month, Tongan police said a 501 deportee from Australian tried to establish the outlaw motorcycle group in the kingdom.
It was stymied by the arrest of 17 people and the seizure of several kilogrammes of methamphetamine and gang regalia in raids across the main island.
Among those arrested were a customs officer and a prison guard.
Tonga Police Commissioner Shane McLennan said they were very confident they would be able to shut down the gang.
There have also been Comanchero members arrested in Turkey, including Rotorua-born Duax Ngakuru, who was last year named the gang's new global "Supreme Commander".
What is the government doing about them?
The coalition government has made much of clamping down on organised crime since the 2023 election campaign, and introduced a Gangs Legislation Amendment Bill as part of its 100-day plan.
Under the proposed changes, gang patches and other insignia would be banned in public and gangs would not be allowed to gather in large numbers.
In February, police said they had crushed six gold-plated motorbikes seized from the Comancheros gang.
The Harley-Davidsons were seized during Operation Nova, a major organised crime operation, in 2019.
In May, police announced its new National Gang Unit to tackle crime and intimidation by gangs.
And during a crime-fighting announcement in June, Christopher Luxon reiterated that gang membership would be an aggravating factor in sentencing from November.
Under the previous government, Parliament passed legislation giving police further powers to disrupt criminal - and gang-related - activity.