Police have conceded bikie violence is escalating in Queensland after the suspected firebombing of a tattoo studio and two shootings, as the state opposition declared “bikies are back”.
Koolsville Studios, owned by Rebels outlaw motorcycle club life member Mick Kosenko, is in ruins after fire tore through the Brisbane business around midnight yesterday. It followed apparent tit-for-tat shootings of a Rebels bikie and a Bandidos associate.
Mr Kosenko fought the bikie crackdown that was launched by the former LNP government under Campbell Newman after a violent brawl at a Gold Coast restaurant in 2013. He has been a member of the Rebels for about 38 years and, with no criminal record, ran in the 2017 state election.
Detective Chief Superintendent Charysse Pond said police were seeing an “escalation in violence in relation to organised criminal gangs”. However, the attacks were “targeted at other criminal gang members”.
“The community is safe. This is targeted violence between criminal networks,” she said.
Mr Kosenko told The Weekend Australian he was “hearing all kinds of stories” about who was behind the fire at the studio in Brendale, on Brisbane’s northern outskirts.
It came after Rebels bikie Gokhan Turkyilmaz was shot up to eight times and bashed with a baseball bat at his home on the Gold Coast on Tuesday.
The shooting was believed to be in retaliation for an attack at Logan’s Hyperdome shopping centre last month, in which a Rebels member shot Bandidos associate Harley Cranston in the leg in an apparent dispute over territory. Nine alleged members or associates of the Rebels have been taken into custody over the shooting.
Gokhan’s brother, Emrah Turkyilmaz, was arrested by bikie-busting Taskforce Maxima detectives on Wednesday in connection to the Hyperdome shooting. Emrah, 22, was released on bail on charges of affray and drug possession, despite police objections.
A police affidavit claimed he had threatened “violent retribution against Bandidos OMCG members responsible for the shooting of his brother”.
Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said it was “clear a bikie turf war is raging on our streets”.
“The LNP introduced the toughest laws in the nation and we got results,’’ she said.
“Bikies left the state and crime rates dramatically reduced. Now under Labor the bikies are back with a vengeance.”
Police Minister Mark Ryan said “police are on top of it, they’re making arrests”. “They’re putting people behind bars and they’ll continue to be proactive when it comes to ensuring community safety,” Mr Ryan said.
Former detective and Bond University criminologist Terry Goldsworthy said police had made “poor decisions” including slashing the number of officers in Taskforce Maxima.
The Rapid Action Patrol group had initially targeted bikies but had since been “sucked into general duties”. “Is it any wonder … you’re starting to see the replication of 2013 where things were allowed to bubble along and suddenly there’s an explosion,’’ Mr Goldsworthy said.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/fire-shootings-sign-of-bikie-turf-battles/news-story/9d5970db41f692afd44717ca4a994798?nk=5fcc004ae790e6416be20d519433ea07-1551458005
Koolsville Studios, owned by Rebels outlaw motorcycle club life member Mick Kosenko, is in ruins after fire tore through the Brisbane business around midnight yesterday. It followed apparent tit-for-tat shootings of a Rebels bikie and a Bandidos associate.
Mr Kosenko fought the bikie crackdown that was launched by the former LNP government under Campbell Newman after a violent brawl at a Gold Coast restaurant in 2013. He has been a member of the Rebels for about 38 years and, with no criminal record, ran in the 2017 state election.
Detective Chief Superintendent Charysse Pond said police were seeing an “escalation in violence in relation to organised criminal gangs”. However, the attacks were “targeted at other criminal gang members”.
“The community is safe. This is targeted violence between criminal networks,” she said.
Mr Kosenko told The Weekend Australian he was “hearing all kinds of stories” about who was behind the fire at the studio in Brendale, on Brisbane’s northern outskirts.
It came after Rebels bikie Gokhan Turkyilmaz was shot up to eight times and bashed with a baseball bat at his home on the Gold Coast on Tuesday.
The shooting was believed to be in retaliation for an attack at Logan’s Hyperdome shopping centre last month, in which a Rebels member shot Bandidos associate Harley Cranston in the leg in an apparent dispute over territory. Nine alleged members or associates of the Rebels have been taken into custody over the shooting.
Gokhan’s brother, Emrah Turkyilmaz, was arrested by bikie-busting Taskforce Maxima detectives on Wednesday in connection to the Hyperdome shooting. Emrah, 22, was released on bail on charges of affray and drug possession, despite police objections.
A police affidavit claimed he had threatened “violent retribution against Bandidos OMCG members responsible for the shooting of his brother”.
Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said it was “clear a bikie turf war is raging on our streets”.
“The LNP introduced the toughest laws in the nation and we got results,’’ she said.
“Bikies left the state and crime rates dramatically reduced. Now under Labor the bikies are back with a vengeance.”
Police Minister Mark Ryan said “police are on top of it, they’re making arrests”. “They’re putting people behind bars and they’ll continue to be proactive when it comes to ensuring community safety,” Mr Ryan said.
Former detective and Bond University criminologist Terry Goldsworthy said police had made “poor decisions” including slashing the number of officers in Taskforce Maxima.
The Rapid Action Patrol group had initially targeted bikies but had since been “sucked into general duties”. “Is it any wonder … you’re starting to see the replication of 2013 where things were allowed to bubble along and suddenly there’s an explosion,’’ Mr Goldsworthy said.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/fire-shootings-sign-of-bikie-turf-battles/news-story/9d5970db41f692afd44717ca4a994798?nk=5fcc004ae790e6416be20d519433ea07-1551458005