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Alleged Queensland bikies charged under laws Labor vowed to repeal Alleged Queensland bikies charged under laws Labor vowed to repeal
(about 1 hour later)
Two alleged Queensland bikies face possible jail time for recruiting to their club as police continue to enforce controversial anti-gang laws that face an uncertain future under the new Labor government.Two alleged Queensland bikies face possible jail time for recruiting to their club as police continue to enforce controversial anti-gang laws that face an uncertain future under the new Labor government.
Two alleged Rebels motorcycle club members were charged on Wednesday with recruiting, a day after alleged Hells Angels were arrested under anti-association laws for participating in a charity ride.Two alleged Rebels motorcycle club members were charged on Wednesday with recruiting, a day after alleged Hells Angels were arrested under anti-association laws for participating in a charity ride.
Both offences, if proven, attract a mandatory six months to three years in jail under laws that the Palaszczuk government vowed to repeal during its election campaign in January. The laws are under review.Both offences, if proven, attract a mandatory six months to three years in jail under laws that the Palaszczuk government vowed to repeal during its election campaign in January. The laws are under review.
Mick Kosenko, the president of Rebels Brisbane, said one of the men arrested had a week ago discussed the impact of the state’s anti-association laws with the new attorney general, Yvette D’Ath.Mick Kosenko, the president of Rebels Brisbane, said one of the men arrested had a week ago discussed the impact of the state’s anti-association laws with the new attorney general, Yvette D’Ath.
Police allege the arrested pair were Rebels bikies and that they tried to recruit another man for a new Moreton Bay chapter of their club to the north of Brisbane. The two accused Rebels, aged 44 and 26, tried to recruit “a number of young men” for a new Moreton Bay chapter in a bar in the lobby of Redcliffe hotel Mon Komo, police allege.
They will allege that CCTV footage of the trio meeting in a Redcliffe pub is among the evidence of attempts to recruit on a number of occasions in February. They were also charged with wearing “gang paraphernalia” in a licensed premises, which is also a criminal offence in Queensland.
Outlaw motorcycle clubs were declared criminal organisations by the former Newman government in a far-reaching suite of laws to be reviewed by a Labor-appointed taskforce by the end of 2015. They were among six alleged Rebels members and associates charged on Wednesday, including one who had been wanted for allegedly wearing “gang paraphernalia” in a Townsville licensed premises last month.
The Palaszczuk government in its first sitting of parliament this week is expected to postpone legislation from its predecessor which would have banned bikies and associates from working in licensed trades. Police in a statement said those arrested included a pair of Rebels from Western Australia who recently moved to Queensland and were “were assisting a former member of the Brisbane (Virginia) Chapter to create a new chapter based at Redcliffe”, north of Brisbane.
Anti-association laws make it illegal for outlaw motorcycle club members to gather in public in groups of more than two and go to bikie clubhouses. A series of raids netted steroids and a doctor’s prescription pad, leading to two accused Rebels associates being charged with fraud offences.
A 44-year-old man of Scarborough, whom police believed was the president of the new chapter, was charged with steroid possession.