Michael McKenna writes in today's The Australian about Queensland's entrenched problems with outlaw motorcycle gangs.   On the weekend bikie hoodlums stormed the Southport Watchhouse.   Drug manufacture and distribution is pretty much monopolised on the Gold Coast by OMCGs, particularly methyl-amphetamine.   And the violence that attends the gangs and their members is deadly.

The Beattie/Bligh Labor governments went soft on gangs for years.   A big part of their softly softly approach was an official refusal to use the word "gang".   For years we had the ridiculous spectacle of police officially referring to gangs as "groups of like minded individuals."

First up The Australian story from today - then some unbelievable details on the murder of Aussie dad Omega Ruston on the Gold Coast on Australia Day, 2009 by persons who are thought to be associated with OMCG and Middle Eastern Crime Gangs.

Call for US-style mob laws to bring bikies to their knees

More than 20 people were arrested after a fight erupted involving the Bandidos and Finks gangs at a Broadbeach restaurant, with bikies later laying siege to the Southport police station to demand the release of fellow members.

Police admitted to being caught out by the violence and called for back-up from neighbouring stations when gang members confronted officers at the station, injuring four of them.

The brazen display by the bikies, as the Liberal National Party government returns to the Supreme Court today to continue its test case to outlaw the Finks, drew a warning from Premier Campbell Newman that the government and police were planning a "never before seen" crackdown on outlaw motorcycle gangs.

The weekend brawls follow a rise in bikie-related violence and Gold Coast drug trafficking.

Mr Newman, who is on a trade mission to Japan, said bikies would face the full force of the law and police would "reclaim the streets".

"We're going to meet the bikies with an equal response in terms of force," he told The Sunday Mail.

"Life is about to get very difficult for them. Every gang member will be assumed to be a criminal and treated as such until this is over."

Here's an article I wrote in 2009 about the murder of Omega Ruston.   Four years later and no one has been charged with taking that family's dad.`    

Bringing Omega Ruston's killer(s) to justice

Justice Peter Dutney has released his decisions in the matter of the CMC (Crime and Misconduct Commission) versus Paul Younan, Jason Khalil, Toni Elbayeh and Mariane Kazzi.  View article here

Younan, Khalil, Elbayeh and Kazzi don’t want to co-operate with either the police or the CMC.

They are persons of interest in the investigation into the murder of the late Omega Ruston.   But they’re not about to tell anyone what they know.

His Honour heard evidence from the CMC and police that Omega Ruston was shot as a result of a road rage incident involving a vehicle with 3 “Lebanese” people inside.

Queensland police have received criminal intelligence reports from NSW police – that information gives rise to suspicions concerning the involvement of the people identified in the NSW police intelligence.

Queensland police believe that the persons of interest won’t cooperate with investigators – police also believe that they may try to leave the country or intimidate other witnesses.

So police went to the CMC to ask the CMC to summons the 4 to appear before a CMC hearing.   At the hearing, the CMC would be able to ask the 4 persons questions on oath and they would be compelled to answer or face charges for not answering.

And the 4 persons have applied to the Supreme Court to have the CMC proceedings discontinued.

They lost.

Paul Younan, Jason Khalil, Toni Elbayeh and Mariane Kazzi will now be summonsed to appear before a CMC hearing in which they will be compelled to answer questions on oath.

At the heart of this is an investigation into the murder of a young father of two.   Dead as a result of a road rage incident on Australia Day.

The late Omega Ruston and his family deserve every bit of the force of law that could bring his murderer(s) to justice.

web.archive.org/web/20091003005242/http://archive.sclqld.org.au/qjudgment/2009/QSC09-241.pdf

http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/qld/QSC/2009/241.html