Zoe Hunter: Police need more power to put hard line on gangs

An armed officer stands guard after a shootout in Tauranga. Photo / Alan Gibson

COMMENT:

The idea of seeing more police in body armour and carrying guns in the Bay of Plenty has frightened some residents.

Their sense of security has been breached after the fallout of what has been appropriately described as "LA-style gang warfare".

This week, police fatally shot a man wanted in connection to the killing of two men at McLaren Falls, near Tauranga. A police car was left riddled with bullets in the shootout.

The death tally is three in less than a week.

No, it is not a scene from a movie. This is real life, and it has happened in supposed-to-be-safe Tauranga, Bay of Plenty.

I'm not scared, though, because the police will keep us safe. But who, and what is in place to keep them safe?

Officers on the frontline have been left distraught after the dramatic fatal shootout.

Our policemen and women are dealing with more violent crime than ever before.

Tauranga is now home to members of the notorious Mongols Motorcycle Club, which has stoked simmering tensions with established Bay gangs including the Mongrel Mob and the Greazy Dogs.

We're also warned newcomers hardened from inter-gang warfare with firearms are radically changing the region's criminal landscape.

Stories headlining the region's newspapers in the past month have included double killings, homicide investigations, suspected arson and brazen shootings.

Quite frankly, I am pleased we are seeing more armed officers hitting the streets.

But more needs to be done to put the hardline on gangs than just pouring more policing into the Bay. Police are under pressure and they need protection, too.

They need the tools, more resources and legal backing to stop those roaming our region as if they are in a PlayStation game. People are dying - real people.

Police need more power.

Tauranga is now home to members of the notorious Mongols Motorcycle Club. Photo / File

The Government needs to work with our local councils to stop this mess. People are scared. Crime like this has never been seen before by public eyes in the Bay.

But something does need to be done and fast. I would hate to see an innocent person caught in the crossfire.

At least, for now, we can be confident this is a flare-up between the gangs and members of the public are not a target.

Police have a vital role in keeping our community safe and they have demonstrated that this week. But it is also vital that police, together with the Government, show our communities will not tolerate such activity and there will be consequences.

This is by no means the end.