Mr Naufahus resurrection of his gang affiliations and his resort to offending in Auckland was virtually guaranteed when he was deported to New Zealand.. Vetekina Naufahu pleaded guilty to three charges at a High Court hearing this morning, held by audio-visual link because of the Covid-19 lockdown in Auckland. At the sentencing on Friday, Crown prosecutor David Johnstone said the defence had tried to unreasonably minimise Naufahus culpability as the leader of the criminal group. The five were arrestedfollowing a series of raidsacross Auckland in April 2019 which saw more than $3.7 million in assets seized along withluxury cars, motorcycles, luxury luggageand jewellery. Earlier, two other men, one of whom will be called as a witness, discuss buying an airplane and whether the particular model could fly all the way from Auckland to Fiji without stopping for fuel. By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. "You clearly knew the money was derived from significant importation of drugs.". The money laundering charge relates to his late-model Range Rover, worth around $150,000, while the organised crime charge carries the most significant penalty of up to 10 years in prison. No more games there is more than a million dollars coming. The Comanchero Motorcycle Club New Zealand president feared he was about to be arrested eight months before a major police bust and also suspected police were bugging his phone, a jury has been told. Ten days prior to that trial, Naufahu pleaded guilty to four charges of money laundering and one of participating in an organised crime group. Hawi's violent death revived memories of the 2009 bikie wars and the Sydney airport brawl. "We are satisfied he is at high risk of re-offending given his past, given his personality, and given his involvement in the Comancheros gang.". Rahman returned to New Zealand and was arrested by the National Organised Crime Group, along with the 19-year-old from Mexico and a 33-year-old Chinese man called Hui Wang. One of the Comanchero members pictured is Pasilika Naufahu, once a senior member of the gang in Sydney, who was deported two years ago, according to the New Zealand Herald. Naufahu whose brother Pasilika is the president of the New Zealand chapter of the Australian motorcycle club also pleaded guilty to possession of MDMA, or Ecstasy, which is a Class-B controlled drug. He was called the Wire Guy because he laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in wire transfers overseas. Emergency services responded to the commercial building fire at 7pm. Australian hairdresserHe Sha was jailed earlier this yearafter he admitted crossing the Tasman to sell pseudoephedrine. READ MORE: * Comancheros gang president Pasilika Naufahu jailed for 10 years * Comancheros: Man who bought car for gang vice-president gets community detention * Comancheros: Gang president found guilty of money laundering and drugs charges. Photo / Supplied In sentencing Daniels - who was wearing a black and gold Versace top - to four years and eight months. Im going to land it between you and me [Ill give you] all the f***en work you can handle. But the police allege the Comanchero, an Australian motorcycle club which set up shop in New Zealand after a number of senior members were deported here, are behind significant drug smuggling linked to a Mexican cartel. The Comanchero Motorcycle Club New Zealand president feared he was about to be arrested eight months before a major police bust and also suspected police were bugging his phone, a jury has been told. Make sure you have subscribed to our Facebook page or Twitter to stay tuned! Later that day, the man yells at Sha that he is wasting time and is going to blow the deal. He said he is paid $2200 a week before tax - the equivalent of $114,000 a year - by a company which was run by another defendant, who has name suppression. However, that is a consequence of your decisions.. Copyright Star Media Network 2019. Around the same time, a consignment of a kitchen stovetops shipped from the United States had been seized by Customs and examined. It demonstrated the drug dealing was conducted from a distance by others on his behalf, Justice Lang said. The offending was sophisticated, said Justice van Bohemen, with encrypted devices used to avoid detection by police. Former Comancheros President Mick Hawi was jailed manslaughter after he stabbed and bludgeoned rival Hells Angel bikie Anthony Zervas in the domestic departure hall of Sydney Airport in 2009.. "You made it work. The gang's secretary Jarome Fonua has previously been jailed for his part in the drug operation. Photo: Supplied, Tyson Daniels, in the gold Versace top, and Auckland lawyer Andrew Simpson at their sentencing hearing in February 2020. Others jailed by Operation NovaComancheros vice-president Tyson Daniels has already been sentenced to four years and eight months' imprisonment. We are making these materials available in an effort for news reporting or educational purposes. You set up the trusts and lent respectability, as a lawyer, to a criminal organisation.". Photo: Jason Oxenham / NZH, This gold-plated motorcycle was among the assets seized in Operation Nova. However, the Court substituted the gang boss 10 year imprisonment to one of nine years. A court has heard a Comanchero-associate drove through Auckland with a million dollars in cash to buy a methamphetamine prescursor, before the deal fell over. I thought you'd be happy to hear that.". "You were the president of the Comancheros" and as such were in a position of influence, Justice Lang said to Naufahu. When brought in for questioning by police, Rahman claimed to be in New Zealand on holiday. A number of trusts were set up and various bank accounts were used to launder money to then purchase luxury cars and property. In August,club treasurer Jarome FonuaandVetekinaadmitted their parts in the operation. His sentence was later reduced to nine years and three months by the Court of Appeal. Two more people involved with the Comancheros motorcycle gang have been sentenced after police surveilled a failed million dollar drug deal and a money launderer funnelling stacks of cash through. The vice-president of the Comancheros says he is a "changed man" and plans to distance himself from his criminal associates now he has been released from prison, according to the Parole Board. Despite this, Simpson was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison. At trial, the Crown said Naufahu was the source of $1m which was meant to be used to purchase pseudoephedrine, but the suppliers withdrew. All of these defendants contributed to his organised criminal group and helped it succeed until the police intervened in April 2019.. one of the founding members of the New Zealand chapter in 2018 but was arrested a year later following a covert investigation, Operation Nova, which targeted the gang's criminal activity. The haul was worth about $20m. Comanchero Motorcycle Gang members have been arrested in Auckland. Naufahu, however, believed he had been treated seriously unfairly and he would not be transferred to another prison to complete the programme. Earlier this month, Fakaosilea was found guilty on several charges of conspiring to import methamphetamine, including a 600kg shipment from South Africa, as well as supplying the Class-A drug. An annual lemonade stand that raises money for children battling cancer is coming to a local Hells Angels club this year. Justice Sally Fitzgerald convicted Naufahu of the three offences and scheduled a sentencing date of October 23, 2020, alongside his fellow Comanchero Jarome Fonua. The word puakas was translated by police as 'pigs'. He was "surprised" to be deported given his imprisonment in Australia had been in short stints. When detectives told him that an audio device had been covertly installed in his hotel room on Queen St, Rahman said: "Oh shit". The Comanchero members and associates were arrested in April 2019 after a massive police search. Rahman was unknown to the team of detectives running Operation Nova until he was overheard talking to one of the frontmen, who cannot be named for legal reasons, whose phone conversations were bugged by police. The poaching is seen as a power move by Meehan, who only recently took over as President after former boss Mick Murray was arrested in April over a 2019 murder. He had also earlier. The jury trial at the High Court is the first one to be held under the current enhancedCovid-19 alert level 2.5in Auckland. Ahead of the trial, another two gang members Jarome Fonua and Vetekina Naufahu also pleaded guilty. Make sure you have subscribed to our Facebook page or Twitter to stay tuned! "All done and sworn in welcome aboard to my brothers in New Zealand," an Australian member of the Comancheros posted on Instagram. The Parole Board imposed special conditions on his release until his sentence officially ends in May 2024. I've told you so many times, don't send me messages," the text read. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. He was convicted of the murder of Hells Angels MC Anthony Zervas. Pasilika Naufahu was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by Justice Graham Lang on Friday at the High Court at Auckland. He had also earlier pleaded guilty to participating in an organised criminal group and money laundering in relation to a $1.3 million home and expensive cars. It talks about being able to pay off $200,000 of a mortgage, and spend the rest of his life on holiday around the world. At trial, Naufahu was found guilty of two charges of money laundering in relation to the purchase of a Bentley and a Ford Ranger. Jurors have been told intercepted calls show coded conversations, discussion of hundreds of thousands of dollars and a suspicion that police had tapped mobile phones. "That's my only income," he said to the bank teller. In total, 18 people were arrested, with lawyer Andrew Simpson and the gangs vice-president Tyson Daniels jailed in 2019 for their part in the operation. Justice Sally Fitzgerald convicted Naufahu of the three offences and scheduled a sentencing date of October 23, 2020, alongside his fellow Comanchero Jarome Fonua. Police feared the gang's connections to international organised crime groups and sophisticated tradecraft would give it outsized influence in New Zealand's criminal underworld. Poverty requires same urgency as Covid-19 - Wellington City Mission, Comancheros boss goes on trial on drug, money laundering charges, Comancheros gang boss goes on trial on drug and money laundering charges, Comancheros trial: $1m drug deal fell through moments from completion, court told, Police listened to gang's calls for months before raid, court told, Comancheros trial: Police listened to gang's calls for months before raid, court told, 'We have land that is build-ready': Housing minister considers temporary Hawke's Bay villages, Prolific 'pork' tag appears in Auckland 1000 times in just over one year, Immigration declines residency visa for family of much-needed Wairoa nurse, Some freight railway lines will remain closed for months due to Cyclone Gabrielle damage - KiwiRail. 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