Organised Crime and Gangs in Australia refers to the activities of various groups of crime families, organised crime syndicates or underworld activities including drug trafficking, contract killing, racketeering and other crimes in Australia.
European-Australian networks
The Carlton Crew
The Carlton Crew, based in Melbourne, is an Italian-Australian criminal organisation from Melbourne, Victoria. It was formed in the late 1970s and was named after the Melbourne suburb in which it is based. The organisation had a strong rivalry with the Honoured Society and the Calabrese Family, both of which were Calabrian 'Ndrangheta groups also based in Melbourne. The Carlton Crew had a strong role in the infamous Melbourne gangland killings.
The Honoured Society
The Honoured Society is a Calabrian 'Ndrangheta group based in Melbourne. In 1963, it was reportedly involved in the Victoria Market Murders. It was led by gangster Frank Benvenuto until his slaying in 2000. Tony Romeo, another high-ranking member, was shot in 2002. Ndrangheta operating in Australia include the Arena, Italiano, Muratore, Benvenuto and Condello clans.
Serbian mafia
The first Serbian mafiosi came to Australia in the late '70s, organised in a Yugoslav clan, their headquarters were some 15 kafanas in Sydney, Wollongong and Melbourne. In the '80s the Serbian Mafia was reinforced with the arrival of Serbian immigrants. Milivoje Matović "Miša Kobra", arrived to Sydney in 1986 and became a known gambler who organised big games. His younger brother Braca owed money to the gang of Žorž Stanković, Žorž sent his son Batica for Miša Kobra whose friend Boža Cvetić threw down the street after he had pointed a gun at them. Batica was deported to Serbia and Braca was killed in the meantime. Žorž was killed in 1993 and his son Batica in 1996. In 2005 interviews with Australian Serbs, it was said some 20 Zemun clan members operated in Australia at the time, double the number working prior to Operation Sablja. Serbian boxer Božidar Cvetić who in 2002 was stabbed, now worked as a bouncer in Australia said that Australian police had shown him pictures of some 150 Serbian criminals active in Australia. In May 2007, Australian police saw recruitment to organised crime motorcycle gangs from young Serbs.
Albanian mafia
Godfather of an Albanian mafia family 'Daut Kadriovski' gained attention of Australian Authorities after creating a drug pipeline through Albanian and Croatian communities in Sydney and Brisbane.
North Asian networks
North Asian networks include the Russian mafia and Yakuza.
Outlaw motorcycle gangs
Outlaw motorcycle gangs are present in Australia, with international outlaw clubs like the Bandidos, Hells Angels and Gypsy Jokers as well as other groups that are localised and less widespread. The outlaw bikie scene in Australia is unique in the sense that it avoided the consolidation that occurred elsewhere. In the United States, the four major biker gangs are the Hells Angels, the Outlaws, the Bandidos and Pagans. Elsewhere, the major biker gangs are the local branches of American gangs. The Hells Angels dominate Canada while Europe is divided primarily between the Hells Angels and the Bandidos. The Canadian journalists William Marsden and Julian Sher wrote: "Unlike in Europe or North America, neither the Hells Angles nor the Bandidos succeeded in entirely vanquishing the fiercely independent Australian bikie gangs".
One of the major events in Australian motorcycle gang criminal history was what became known as the Milperra Massacre in 1984, where a fight between two gangs, the Comancheros and the Bandidos in Milperra in the South of Sydney, turned into a gun battle that claimed seven lives - six gang members and a civilian. Despite the shock caused by the Milperra Massacre, bikie gangs increased in number after 1984 due to the profits offered by selling methamphetamine. A consolidation began in 1994 as the larger clubs eliminated the smaller clubs, which caused 35 murders between 1994-2000. The number of clubs was reduced down from 178 in 1994 to 32 in 2000.