In 2018, as part of Operation Nova, police detectives from the National Organised Crime Group covertly filmed a drug deal involving the Comancheros motorcycle gang. Video / Mike Scott
The vice-president of the Comancheros says he is a "changed man" and plans to distance himself from his criminal associates now he has been released from prison, according to the Parole Board.
Tyson Daniels was one of the founding members of the New Zealand chapter in 2018 but was arresteda year later following a covert investigation, Operation Nova, which targeted the gang's criminal activity.
The 33-year-old pleaded guilty to nine charges of money laundering and participating in an organised criminal group, in relation to purchasing a fleet of luxury vehicles worth $2.6 million, including late-model Range Rovers, a Bentley and a Rolls-Royce.
"You clearly knew that the money was derived from a significant drug importation and supply operation by the group of which you are a member," Justice van Bohemen told Daniels in February 2020.
"Your place in the Comancheros hierarchy means you were one of the directors of this serious offending, which exemplifies how organised criminal groups can obtain significant financial benefit from offending without putting themselves directly at risk."
Daniels was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison, later extended by three months for punching another inmate.
Since then, however, Daniels has been a model prisoner. He was released from prison this week after the Parole Board decided he was no longer an "undue risk" to the public.
Tyson Daniels at his High Court sentencing in February 2020. He is wearing an expensive Versace shirt in the black and gold colours of the Comancheros. Photo / Michael Craig
The Parole Board rulings released to the Herald on Sunday showed that Daniels had a strong work ethic and was considered to be "compliant and respectful" by Corrections staff.
He had strong support from his wife and sister and had also completed Saili Matagi, a rehabilitation programme tailored for inmates of Pasifika heritage.
His lawyer, Marie Dyhrberg, QC, asked the Parole Board to consider "belief in redemption" as all the available evidence showed Daniels was a changed man.
As part of his release plan, Daniels will attend a rehabilitation programme and one-on-one private counselling with a psychologist.
"Mr Daniels spoke about his high-risk situations, how he will stay away from old associates and a pro-social future he plans," the Parole Board wrote in its July decision.
"He accepted that he lived a high lifestyle, but he said he has now learned that reconnection with his culture and family is more important."
Daniels politely declined to comment to the Herald on Sunday.
The Parole Board imposed special conditions on his release until his sentence officially ends in May 2024.
These include electronic monitoring with a curfew between 10pm-6am, not to use drugs, not to communicate or associate with co-offenders, or anyone connected to the Comancheros.
The Australian motorcycle gang established a chapter in New Zealand after 14 members were deported as so-called "501s", in reference to the section of Australia's immigration law used to revoke visas on "character" grounds.
One of the expensive cars purchased by the Comancheros and seized in Operation Nova. Photo / Supplied
Operation Nova was launched in late 2018 because police were concerned about the Comancheros' connections to international organised crime figures, and the gang's immediate impact - along with other Australian outlaw motorcycle clubs - on New Zealand's criminal underworld.
The covert investigation ended in April 2019, when most of the Comancheros' hierarchy were arrested on offences of money laundering and participating in an organised criminal group.
Daniels, the vice-president, was later convicted along with president Pasilika Naufahu and his brother Vetekina, as well as the club's treasurer, Jarome Fonua.
Seiana Fakaosilea, the gang's sergeant-at-arms, was not arrested in Operation Nova. In the absence of his colleagues, the 20-year-old was promoted as the acting "commander" until his arrest in another covert investigation, Operation Cincinnati, in late 2020.
Earlier this month, Fakaosilea was found guilty on several charges of conspiring to import methamphetamine, including a 600kg shipment from South Africa, as well as supplying the Class-A drug.
Those guilty verdicts mean that since the Herald on Sunday revealed the infamous Instagram post announcing their arrival in 2018, five of the six founding members of the New Zealand Comancheros have been convicted of either serious drug or money laundering offences.
The Comancheros posted this photograph on Instagram in 2018 to announce the New Zealand chapter. Tyson Daniels is standing on the far right. Photo / Supplied.
