The Counties Manukau Police Road Crime Unit is based at the district headquarters in Manukau City. The unit was originally formed under the banner of Operation Sniper, with the sole aim of reducing incidents of illegal street-racing in Counties Manukau district.
Historically, huge ‘drag trains’ of cars would snake their way from Auckland City to the industrial and rural parts of south Auckland where they would block roads, do burnouts, drag-race, and often crash! The ‘drags’ were organized by the well-known criminal gangs and would be used as a front for them to deal drugs and stolen property. In 2006, Counties Manukau Police received 1143 complaints of drag-racing and/or burnouts.
In 2008, the responsibility for policing the boy-racers became a full-time job for two sergeants. That first year saw a large decline in the number of complaints and within 12 months, the 'drag train' had been completely eradicated. Quay Street in Auckland City, the traditional meeting point for the illegal street-racers, often resembles a ghost town on Friday and Saturday nights.
Some of the tactics employed by the unit include deploying undercover police officers to infiltrate the scene, cultivating informants, zero-tolerance highly visible enforcement and education of both participants and their parents. The sergeants also worked closely with partner agencies, including Manukau City Council, the Insurance Council, NZTA vehicle inspectors and the Ministry of Justice bailiffs – ensuring that fines were paid or cars were seized! By the end of 2008, the number of complaints had dropped to 767. This equates to a reduction of 33% over the 2006 figure.
Many parents are completely ignorant as to where their child really goes to at night. It is crucial that we educate parents about the dangers associated with the illegal street-racing scene and we need them to work with us to restrict access to powerful/modified vehicles. It is easier to say ‘No’ than to have to say ‘Goodbye’.
Franklin still features high on our statistics and actually generates more street-racing complaints than any other area in the entire Auckland region!
It is therefore a priority for the unit to respond to every complaint where a registration number has been obtained. We will prosecute whenever possible and conviction means a criminal record, disqualification for at least 6 months and up to 3 months in prison.
If you witness any street-racing behaviour, or would like legal or technical advice relating to vehicle modifications, our team can be contacted via email at operation.sniper@police.govt.nz or at 09 261 1308. Help us to keep your community safe.