6. RON MARK (NZ First) Link to this
to the Minister of Police
How many gangs are known by police to exist in New Zealand, and what is the estimated number of affiliated members for each of these gangs?
Hon PHIL GOFF (Minister of Defence) Link to this
The Minister of Police is advised that a survey of organised crime in 2004 identified 69 gangs, with 32 of them being motorcycle gangs. The police have also advised that it is not possible, with the ever-changing face of gangs, to estimate the number of affiliates.
How many gang affiliates were apprehended in the last financial year, and how does that figure compare with the number apprehended in previous years?
To the best of my knowledge, gang affiliation is not recorded against the names of convicted offenders. However, the member will know that there is a high correlation between gang membership and criminal offending. He will also know that our jails are full of offenders who are affiliated to gangs.
Martin GallagherThere are a number of different types of gangs, obviously, and the youth gang problem is different in nature from the problem of gangs that are involved in organised crime. But it is a serious problem in South Auckland, and in Ōtāhuhu. An action plan was launched last month in Counties-Manukau and Ōtāhuhu. That plan has the police working with non-governmental agencies, local bodies, and communities. It involves the setting up of youth action teams. It involves proactivity on the part of the police in dispersing large gatherings where violence is threatening. It involves the employment of youth workers responsible for juveniles who have been picked up by the police. It involves the vigorous policing of liquor bans, and a series of other intervention and prevention measures, run across a number of different Government agencies.
How many of the gang affiliates apprehended in the last financial year were charged under section 98A of the Crimes Act, under which participation in a criminal gang is punishable by up to 5 years in prison; and how does that number compare with the number charged each year since the passage of the Transnational Organised Crime Bill, passed by a Labour Government in 2002?
Section 98A does make participation in an organised criminal gang a criminal offence, with the police being required to prove that the individual knows that his or her participation contributes to the occurrence of criminal activity. My understanding is that that section was used on a dozen occasions in 2004-05 and 18 times last year. The reason the police do not use that provision more often—among other reasons—is that if it is possible to charge the gang member with a violent, sexual, or drug offence, they will use that provision, because it carries a higher maximum sentence.