Law-breaking bikies have been warned to clean up their act after 100 people were arrested, 50 charges laid and weapons, drugs and $100,000 cash seized in a massive blitz.
The crime-busting effort, which ran from August 5 to 9, involved all state and territory police, along with Australian Federal Police, Border Force, the Defence Force and Australian Taxation Office to target outlaw motorcycle gangs.
Police zeroed in on drugs, firearms, compliance searches and service, weapons and explosives, with each state and territory targeting their highest-priority issues.
Acting Commander Jason Kelly, from Victoria Police’s Crime Command and chair of National Taskforce Morpheus said the crackdown on the groups was just ramping up
"We will be relentless in our pursuit of outlaw motorcycle gangs and those who facilitate their activities," he said.
“They are motivated by greed and profit and we know that they have a culture of secrecy and intimidation and a greater propensity for extreme violence."
Another focus of the action was gang members involved in family violence matters.
This followed Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) research that found bikies were twice as likely to be linked to domestic violence offences as the wider male offending population.
OMCG members were nearly three times as likely to have contact with the criminal justice system by age 33 as other men, Mr Kelly said.
"You pay a penalty for being part of a gang and that penalty is not just for you as an individual but it's also for your family ... many people who get involved in gangs regret that," Mr Kelly said.
In total, 35 firearms were seized along with 742 explosives or various types of ammunition and 18 weapons.
More than 740,000 illicit cigarettes were seized, over 900 illicit vapes, 75kg of loose-leaf tobacco and 125kg of shisha.
More than $100,000 cash was seized and 72 traffic offences were detected, with 29 defect notices issued and one vehicle impounded.
In Australia, the average cost of crime and prison alone add up to approximately $1.3 million per OMCG offender over the course of their criminal careers, according to the AIC research.
AFP Acting Commander Adrian Telfer said the initiative consolidated state and territory police resources.
“OMCGs continue to pose a significant threat to Australia’s economy, national security and way of life," he said.
Taskforce Morpheus was established in 2014 to implement a nationally co-ordinated response to high-threat outlaw motorcycle gangs.
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