Christchurch Comancheros gang pad has signage removed after entire chapter arrested in Operation Avon crackdown

The Comancheros gang headquarters in Christchurch has had its prominent signage removed just a week after its entire local chapter was arrested in an unprecedented police crackdown.

Police seized millions of dollars worth of drugs, cash and guns in the culmination of an eight-month probe into the gang’s activities.

Twenty-one people were arrested, including every patched member in Christchurch.

The gang patched over the rival Rebels MC gang and took over their gang pad at Thackers Quay in the Woolston area of Christchurch in July last year.

They have used the building in the industrial cul-de-sac as their gang pad since.

The Comancheros headquarters pictured last year after the gang took over the building from the Rebels MC. Photo / George Heard

But this week, the large sign declaring “Comanchero Motorcycle Club”, which featured the gang’s insignia, has been taken down.

Operation Avon has already seen $1.9 million of assets including an Auckland property and 11 vehicles seized.

It’s understood that police are now looking at seizing the Thackers Quay gang pad.

Guns, cash and drugs were seized as part of Operation Avon last week.

Detective Inspector Darrin Thomson earlier said the Christchurch chapter of the Comancheros became a priority target of the National Organised Crime Group (NOCG), supported by Canterbury Police, earlier this year as “their brazen alleged offending spread across New Zealand”.

“We utilised a suite of tactics to identify the offenders,” he said at a press conference after a series of raids last week.

“Early on, our investigation identified significant drug offending involving the Class A controlled drugs methamphetamine and cocaine, and extensive money laundering.”

Police allege the gang organised for drugs and cash to be relayed between Auckland and Christchurch every few weeks.

Detective Inspector Darrin Thomson speaks to media after police arrested entire Christchurch Comancheros chapter. Photo / George Heard

Thomson said more than $1m worth of drugs at wholesale value were believed to have been moved between the North and South Island, which police will allege at prosecution equates to a street value of more than $15m.

“We have no doubt the disruption of the Christchurch-based Comanchero gang would have a positive impact on the Canterbury community,” Thomson said, adding it would make “a very large dent” in the spread of drugs across the country.

Thomson did not know how many patched members were remaining in the country.

Police launched Operation Cobalt in July 2022 to respond to a spike in intimidating behaviour and violence by gangs in the first half of the year.

Since then, police have seized hundreds of firearms and laid thousands of charges in court, as well as confiscating commercial quantities of drugs and large sums of cash.