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Police in NSW report an increase in teenagers from Pacific Islander backgrounds joining criminal gangs, particularly within a power struggle involving the Alameddine family and the Coconut Cartel. Former gang member Malik Nikua supports the recent legislative changes that allow young offenders involved in serious organized crimes to face adult penalties, arguing that previous lenient responses encouraged further criminal behavior.
There has been an increase in teens with Pacific Islander backgrounds being involved with criminal gangs in NSW. Sydney's gangland war has become a political issue, after a string of mistaken-identity attacks against innocent people — allegedly committed by young, inexperienced criminals.
Police believe the latest chapter is being driven by a power struggle between the Alameddine crime family and the self-proclaimed "Coconut Cartel", a network of gang members with links to the Pacific Islander community.
"We're very aware of the Coconut Cartel and those groups that are traditionally from a Pacific Islander background," Superintendent Phil Hallinan told 7.30. "At the moment there has been an increase with Pacific Islander kids being involved in crime. We're hoping that's just a blip, as we've seen in other communities.
"I guess some of the kids that have been recruited and involved … it's probably by people they know and people they might trust and look up to. "Former Malik Nikua has welcomed tougher penalties for juveniles involved in organised crime. "I was 15 when I got my first charge — grievous bodily harm," Mr Nikua told 7.30.
Currently the offence carries a 25-year maximum sentence in NSW, but Mr Nikua said back then he walked away from a police station after four hours with little more than "a slap on the wrist".
"There was no real punishment. And at that age, that taught me something dangerous: I will get lucky again.
" Emboldened by the lack of repercussions and praise from his friends, Mr Nikua started a youth gang that evolved into the Inner West Brotherhood and the drill rap group 21 District, which rose to prominence in 2019 at the height of Western Sydney's postcode wars. As authorities warn of a new generation of teenagers getting involved in gang-related crime, law reforms passed by NSW Parliament last week will see children face adult penalties if they commit some organised crime-related offences, including public shootings and fire-bombings.
, Pasifika police officers also attend the weekly sessions to work with communities in Sydney's west that are affected by youth crime. Samoan-born NSW Police Sergeant Ben Sega launched the network about four years ago after noticing a trend emerging in serious and organised crime investigations.
Sergeant Ben Sega launched a network of Pasifika officers to work with communities affected by youth crime.
"It was important for us to do something because we were just seeing too many young men, particularly Pasifika young men, getting caught up in organised crime and being used by these networks to do their heavy lifting," he said. A mother at a session told 7.30 she wanted to keep her children on the right track.
"I've got seven kids. Trying to control each and every one is hard. It's difficult.
" The escalation in gangland crime in Sydney — and the increased involvement of teenagers — has frightened her. "There are break-ins, there's murders happening, so many sirens of different police, ambulances being escorted. It's quite scary how it's not safe anymore.
""There's only so much you can do at home. It's when they walk out those doors you don't know who is around … who is able to manipulate them," she said.
"There's too much social media … too many different apps they can communicate through. That's probably the scariest part: not knowing what is on their phone or what they have access to.
"The parents of teenage boys in Cobham Youth Justice Centre have also raised concerns about the escalation in gang-related issues. ABC News: Shaun KingmaYouth Justice NSW acting project officer Leilani Tonumaipea said the centre had recently expanded its program for Pacific Islander youth to include sessions with parents.
"Parents are concerned their young people are becoming easily exposed to , so what they've said is, what can they do to help? " she said. "For us, the best way to help our parents is help them understand … why gravitate towards committing crime. " Many of the boys in the program need to be separated when they first arrive due to rivalry between street gangs from different parts of Sydney.
"At the moment, it is quite common , even to the point we felt like we were running out of units or spaces to house them," Ms Tonumaipea said. Leilani Tonumaipea says the Pasifika program at Cobham Youth Justice Centre aims to break down barriers for teens from rival gangs.
"These programs and the other programs we run help mediate the young people's gang-related issues … and the main thing we utilise is they have many more positives in common than opposites," she said. "When they come together through these programs, their values and their commonalities bring them back together. " 7.30 spoke with a teenage boy taking part in the Pasifika program. For legal reasons, their identities and charges cannot be published.
One teenager told 7.30 he had focused on changing his behaviour since arriving at Cobham more than a year ago and that detention came with some hard lessons.
"People always told me, 'Your friends won't be there for you when you're in here. 'He attributed the rise in teenagers getting involved in crime to increased financial pressures and a lack of role models, but said he had been shown how to change. "They've really helped me identify myself and knowing who I want to be and how I want to lead myself. "
Pacific Islander Gangs NSW Juvenile Crime Coconut Cartel Legislative Reform Gangland Violence
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