An Auckland councillor says talks were held with rival Auckland gangs over the weekend and if a reported truce is true, he hopes it will continue.
A bullet hole in window at aTe Atatu house after a spate of shootings in Auckland suburbs. Photo: RNZ / Rayssa Almeida
Tensions between the Killer Beez and Tribesmen have resulted in multiple shootings in Auckland and Northland in recent weeks.
The New Zealand Herald reported a truce has been agreed after talks over the weekend between senior leaders of the Tribesmen and Killer Beez, according to gang and police sources.
Part of the deal is that the Killer Beez are not allowed to wear their patches in Ōtara, the suburb of Manukau that both gangs claim a historical connection, the Herald report said.
Manukau councillor Alf Filipaina said talks between gangs, police and community leaders had been going on for the past few weeks.
He was asked by police to attend a meeting with gang leaders at the weekend, but that did not happen.
"I knew the conversations were happening - and that was on the weekend just gone," he said.
If the reported truce was true "may that continue," he said.
Police have refused to comment.
Manukau councillor Alf Filipaina. Photo: Auckland Council
Filipaina said he was glad dialogue was going on, for the safety of the community.
"When I was in the police in South Auckland I remember the starting of the Tribesmen the starting of the Killer Beez so they're going to be part of the community after I'm gone.
"So yes it's weird talking about a ceasefire, a truce, but we need to continue with that dialogue."
"That's the environment we're living in, especially in South Auckland but that's across New Zealand as well in regard to the two gangs we're talking about.
"But that's the reality we're in."
There was a need to get firearms off the street so the community wasn't caught in the middle, he said.
Last week the National Party released its policy on gangs, including banning gang members wearing patches in public, and blocking their access to guns.
