Police Commissioner Andrew Coster has given an assurance new gang units won’t just focus on Māori and Pasifika gangs.
The Budget will include funding for a 30-strong national gang unit to support smaller gang disruption units in the regions which will monitor gang activity and target offenders.
Mr Coster says a lot of their work will be implementing gang patch bans and other measures now before parliament, and a patch is a patch whoever is wearing it.
Relationships with iwi Maori remain important to Police.
“One of the things I find very interesting is most marae don’t accept gang patches on their ground. I am keen to see that korero extended in to communities. It’s an acknowledgement people don’t want to see patches and they do find them initimidating but of course removing the patches is just one thing. The bigger picture is how we stop young people falling into this in the first place,” Mr Coster says.
He expects some groups will not choose a path that puts them at odds with police, while others are likely to resist with violence.
