Grid Sparta Podcast

Stanley Turvey, a declared armed fugitive and a member of the Finks bikie club, has died after being shot by the police during a standoff in northern Victoria. This marks the end of the largest manhunt in the state over the past eight years, spanning across regional Victoria. Turvey had been on the run for the last three days, during which he committed a series of crimes, including discharging a f...

Task Force Magnus has arrested the sister of Comanchero Sgt-at-arms Tarek Zahed, in a sweeping operation across Sydney. This crackdown followed the gangland killing of underworld figure, Alen Moradian, in june. She was one out of nine people arrested and charged by detectives as they continue to target and suppress violent and organised criminal activity. Magnus detectives also seized firearms, pr...

Gavin "Capable" Preston, one of Melbourne's most notorious gangland figures, has been shot dead in the city's north-west in what appears to be a deadly underworld attack, shortly after his release from prison. His murder, a mere few months after tasting the bitter sweetness of freedom, paints a chilling portrait of city's unforgiving criminal underworld. According to reports,...

The ACT is set to become the first Australian jurisdiction to decriminalise small amounts of commonly used illicit drugs, such as ice, heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, LSD, amphetamines and speed. Laws passed in the territory’s parliament, mean that the people found with small amounts of nine different types of illicit drugs will not be criminally prosecuted. People found with amounts considered to be &q...

Australia's most recognizable bikie has been banned from the Perth Mint and three major Australian banks after buying $27,000 worth of gold bars. A notorious former bikie was reportedly allowed to purchase 27 grand worth of gold from Perth Mint without extensive screening. Perth Mint remains under investigation by financial crime regulator AUSTRAC, which last year ordered the appointment of an...

NSW Police and Riot squad target clan labs

Mongols National President, Jim David Thacker, also known as J.D. or Jack Daniels was a force to be reckoned with, as he pulled no punches in his quest for criminal success. From devising a far-reaching drug-running operation to raining bullets down on the home of a rival gang, he made sure his mark was made. The man who was in-charge of the Mongols MC in New Zealand, led them to become very power...

Head Hunters members gathered in Auckland to pay respect to one of their fallen members, who died after a serious confrontation that took place in Point England in Auckland. Charles  Pongi, 32, died two weeks ago after turning up to Auckland Hospital with gunshot wounds. He was fatally shot following a planned one-on-one fight between members of the Head Hunters and Rebel Motor cycle clubs, and th...

Police have arrested almost 160 people as part of a national crackdown on motorcycle gangs. A country-wide operation, dubbed Taskforce Morpheus, featured more than 2000 officers homing in on bikie gangs for a week ending Sunday. They ultimately laid almost 700 charges and seized 43 firearms, along with more than 20 other weapons, 11 vehicles and about $1 million in cash during the operation. Offic...

The incident occurred at Spring Street in Bondi Junction around 8.30 am at an underground car park. Moradian, 48, was ambushed by two assailants and killed. The police who were informed of the incident rushed to the spot and saw the cocaine lord lying on the road in a pool of blood. New South Wales police said that two men fired into his vehicle as he sat in the front seat. “The shooting this morn...

Raptor Squad have seized two firearms following two-weeks of action targeting bikie members and their associates under Operation Patch. Operation Patch was carried out from Wednesday 24 May 2023 to Thursday 1 June 2023 in suburbs of Five dock, Westmead, Earlwood and Wiley Park. During the operation, officers attached to Raptor Squad served four firearm prohibition orders, searched 26 vehicles, and...

In a significant blow to Western Australia's drug trade, law enforcement authorities have made a major breakthrough. Acting on an ongoing investigation into suspected drug trafficking activities, the police successfully seized a staggering $14 million worth of methamphetamine from a property in Ballajura. The operation also resulted in the arrest of Mohammed Charif Oueida, a former member of t...

A Sydney man has been charged for allegedly orchestrating one of the largest heroin importations in recent Australian history. Guy Habkouk, 35, was detained by Australian Federal Police at Sydney International Airport on Saturday morning, as he arrived from Turkish Air, for orchestrating the import of 347.9kg of heroin in December 2020 -- one of the largest in Australian history. The drugs have an...

In June 2021, two prominent members of the Finks motorcycle club were arrested and faced charges in connection with a fire incident at a tattoo parlor in Blacktown. Charlie Barakat and Jack Baum, both prominent and high ranking members of the Finks, were apprehended by detectives from the Raptor Squad who conducted raids on their residences in northwest Sydney in November of the same year. Barakat...

Mystery continues to shroud the circumstances surrounding the death of Mongrel Mob member Raniel Kiu, in Palmerston North. Despite police efforts, no arrests have been made thus far. The tragedy unfolded on the evening of Thursday, May 18, 2023, when Kiu, aged 35, sustained severe injuries at a residence on Dahlia Street in the heart of Palmerston North. Raniel Kiu also known as Qdogg was a member...

Australia’s biggest bikie clubs have been put on notice after extending their operations into South-East Asia, Thailand in particular… in a bid to boost their access to drugs and also avoid law enforcement. Many big Australian bikie clubs are either seeking or have already expanded to Thailand to widen their operations, to diversify their criminal enterprise and increase their influence. Expanding...

The South Australian Supreme Court in Adelaide, has heard shocking new details of a deadly episode that occurred more than 10 year ago between two bitter rival biker clubs. In November 2012, tragedy struck when Jason De Ieso was ruthlessly finished in his own Pooraka crash repairs workshop. Despite having no involvement whatsoever in the feud between the two clubs, De Ieso was mercilessly gunned d...

Sydney's bikie scene is seeing another change as the mighty Hells Angels expand their presence in the city. The club has been making waves in recent weeks, with reports indicating that it is rapidly gaining members and establishing itself as a force to be reckoned with. According to the reports 81s expansion in Sydney is part of a broader strategy to increase its presence in major Australian c...

A former Mongols Bikie Sam Abdul-Rahim also known as The punisher, who was targeted in a drive-by shooting less than a year ago, made a public appearance in a boxing ring last night. Abdul Rahim was shot eight times while returning from his cousin's funeral on June 25 last year. He was driving his luxury Mercedes along Box Forest Rd in Fawkner when the gunmen pulled up in a stolen Mazda and sh...

New South Wales and Victoria Police have arrested 27 people in total and seized multiple firearms, following the conclusion of a joint-agency police operation across Southern New South Wales and north-eastern Victoria, targeting bikies and organised criminal networks. The Operation was named Blue Ember and it was established by the New South Wales Police Force and Raptor Squads – in partnership wi...

Last year, a former bikie named Yusuf Nazlioglu was fatally shot in a car park in Rhodes, located in Sydney's inner west. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his head and torso and was rushed to Westmead Hospital from his apartment car park where he passed away soon after. The victim, aged 40, was a former member of the Lone Wolf bikie club who had been acquitted of the murder of Comancher...

Gavin "Capable" Preston, a notorious gangland figure, has been set free from jail after serving almost 11 years for the shooting death of notorious drug dealer Adam Khoury. The 50-year-old was released earlier this month, having been found guilty of "defensive homicide" in connection with the killing of Adam Khoury and the wounding of another drug dealer in 2012. In 2015, Prest...

Australian authorities have seized the second largest heroin shipment ever detected in Australia after intercepting 336kg of the illicit drug inside a shipment sent from Malaysia to Brisbane. A Sydney man, with bikie links who collected the consignment in Brisbane and transported it to New South Wales has been arrested and charged

The widow of slain Rebels bikie boss Nick Martin claims her former partner was “controlling” and “hostile” during their relationship as she defends allegations she was part of a 2013 incident in which Martin threatened and assaulted his accountant over dodgy tax returns. Mrs Martin denies the allegations. Amanda Martin sat quietly in Perth District Court on Tuesday on the first day of her trial, w...

Raptor North officers have seized multiple firearms and charged six people with various firearm, drug and assault offences, following an investigation into an alleged assault at a Newcastle pub in February this year. About 4.30pm on Saturday 18 February 2023, a 36-year-old man had been asked to leave the premises by a staff member. the man became argumentative and grabbed the female employee’s arm...