Guns, drugs and over $150,000 in cash among items seized in police gang crackdown

Saturday, 13 June 2026

Jewellery and cash were among the items seized.

A coordinated crackdown on an outlaw motorcycle gang has resulted in five arrests and the seizure of military-style firearms, cash, and drugs.

The Trans-Tasman operation, named Taskforce Morpheus, involved police across the country targeting members and associates of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Police laid 18 charges for firearms offences as well as class A and B drug offences.

Detective Inspector Wayne Gray, from the National Gang Unit, said a raft of other illegal items were seized during searches across Auckland. Police also carried out enforcement activity in the Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Central, and Tasman districts.

During a search at a property in Te Atatū Peninsula, officers located three AR-15 military semi-automatic rifles alongside firearms parts and ammunition.

'These illegal and violent activities that outlaw motorcycle gangs choose to involve themselves in are having impacts across many communities,' Gray said.

'We welcome every opportunity to work with law enforcement agencies across borders, and this unified effort is continuing to put pressure on gangs.'

Other searches uncovered a variety of illicit items and cash. At a gang pad in Takanini, police seized 400 bottles of alcohol and spirits over alleged breaches of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act.

Quantities of methamphetamine, MDMA, and GBL were also recovered. Across the operation, police located more than $150,000 in cash and about $93,000 in jewellery.

Two vehicles, a Mercedes-Benz and a Ford Ranger, were impounded in Mount Eden.

Three patched gang members and two associates now face criminal prosecution. The 18 charges laid include the unlawful possession of prohibited firearms, possession for supply of methamphetamine, and possession for supply of fantasy.

Gray said police remain committed to community safety and preventing the harm and intimidation caused by gangs.

'Police will continue to target and disrupt the secretive and illegal activities these gangs are involving themselves in, which is resulting in serious charges being laid as is the case in this latest phase,' he said.