Road Knights Motorcycle Club
| Founded | 1979 |
|---|---|
| Territory | Invercargill, Dunedin, Timaru |
The Road Knights Motorcycle Club is an outlaw motorcycle club that operates in the South Island of New Zealand with a presence in Invercargill, Dunedin, and Timaru. Since 2012, new chapters have been formed in Thailand, Netherlands and the United States.[1]
Its rivalry with the Mongrel Mob boiled over in June 2008 in Invercargill when the Road Knights' building was burned down and two motorcycles stolen.[2] The motorcycles were later found by police at the local Mongrel Mob headquarters but had been set on fire.[2] Two Mongrel Mob members were charged with the arson.[3]
As of 2009, Road Knights membership in New Zealand was low and former leadership had dispersed, died or gone to jail.[4]
History
[edit]The Road Knights Motorcycle Club was founded in 1979.[5]
In the late 1980s, the Road Knights became involved in a war with the Damned which resulted in several violent incidents. The first death occurred in October 1987, when Robert Holvey, a Damned associate, was killed with an axle after a ramming incident outside the Invercargill prison. Three Road Knights members were charged with murder, but the charges were later dismissed.[6]
In January 1988, while many police officers were in Arrowtown investigating the murder of Maureen McKinnel, there was a bomb attack against a Waikiwi bank. This was a diversion for a bombing attack against the Road Knights HQ, which caused only minor damage as some of the gelignite bombs failed to detonate. A gang sniper was believed to have been posted to cover the bombers, and shots were fired at a police car. No one was convicted relating to these incidents.[6]
In 2004, Jarrod Mangels was convicted of the 1987 murder of Maureen McKinnel, which happened before he joined the club.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ "Chapters". Road Knights. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
- ^ a b "Gang tensions on knife edge", The Southland Times, 2008-06-19, retrieved 2010-08-02
- ^ "Two Mob members charged over Road Knights fire", Otago Daily Times, 2008-07-09, retrieved 2010-08-02
- ^ "Patch Work", The Timaru Herald, July 31, 2009, retrieved 2013-07-29
- ^ Stokes, Cam. "NZ gang history photos — RK's (Road Knights') 20th anniversary 1999". GangScene. Archived from the original on February 8, 2013. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
- ^ a b The Southern Beat, Michele Poole, Southland Police Trust, Invercargill 2002 pp. 225-226.
- ^ "Jarrod Allan Mangels". Safe-nz.org.nz. Archived from the original on 2010-05-22. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Road Knights at Wikimedia Commons
