Ngavii Pekapo’s wardrobe is full of what he calls his “korowai”, his gang patches.

“It’s really your passport, that’s basically what it is: it connects your whole family. It’s not just about me, it’s about my wife, my children, my grandchildren- children,” he said.

Ngavii Pekapo who founded the CHB Mongrel Mob chapter.
Photo: Paul Taylor

Fifty-four years ago he started the Central Hawke’s Bay chapter of the Mongrel Mob. It is one of the oldest chapters in the country and in those years it has seen a lot. But nothing compares to this – a total ban on gang patches in public.

“I don’t see this lasting unless they have a budget to put in jail, which I think is absolutely stupid, really ridiculous,” he said.

“The patches have been around for 65 years, and then you have these so-called politicians who come in and want to make a decision on it – that’s the sad thing.”

He feared that now that the ban was enforced, things would turn violent, as he doubted many younger members would obey it.

“It’s really going to be a big problem…and this is for any ethnic group, whether the brothers lose their equipment…they’re going to break out and someone is going to pay the price.”

“You can’t ask another culture to tell us how we wear our tangi… that’s something they have to understand. If it has something to do with our culture, we’ll put on our korowai. “

The police are “salivating” over the new laws

A last-minute change to the law extends the ban on the gang patch to those who have been prosecuted for violations three times, meaning they are also banned from wearing the patch at home.

It also gives police increased search powers so they can go to gang members’ homes to enforce the rules, if they suspect the gang member has regalia in their home.

Denis O’Reilly, Black Power Life Member.
Photo: Paul Taylor

Black Power life member Denis O’Reilly said this was a particular concern.

“If someone gets caught, they’re going to be expected to defend their territory, so who knows what’s going to happen,” O’Reilly said.

“I think there are probably police officers who are salivating at the thought of midnight and are ready to engage in a score-settling…I think some gang members, particularly the younger ones, will happily accept their challenge. So that worries me.”

He was also concerned about how the police raids would be carried out.

“I’m concerned about the welfare of the whānau. The whānau gangs and the whānau police.”

But Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Basham told RNZ that was not the case.

“This is part of our community impact assessment… which looks at what the unintended consequences might be when we go to an address and that includes the unintended consequences on our other family and/or our children.

“We have a job to do. We want to be sure how we go about this enforcement. But the idea that we would be a little reckless and a kind of scare tactic around these kinds of mandates – that’s not is certainly not my intention, and I think it is highly unlikely.

Joy Pekapo says whanau gangs are worried about violent and traumatic police raids due to new gang laws.
Photo: Paul Taylor

But that wasn’t reassuring for the gangs, said Ngavii’s wife Joy. Many of them talk about the recent Ōpōtiki raids where mothers and children were traumatized.

“That’s our main concern. We have a lot of women sitting down to discuss how we can attack this new law that they have imposed on our men,” she said.

“We’re involved, whether we like it or not, we’re a part of it and so are the kids.”

O’Reilly fears there will be scenes similar to the infamous 2007 Tūhoe raids.

“Young people see their fathers, their grandfathers, their uncles, their mothers thrown to the ground and mistreated… it triggers hatred, fear and apprehension that can become intergenerational,” he said.

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