Police say they have now charged almost every New Zealand member of the Comanchero MC gang, including all of its leaders, after a major trans-Tasman operation.
Amongs the latest arrests, five Comanchero Motorcycle Club members and their associates have been charged and large amounts of tobacco and illegal drugs seized from inside prison cells.
Three other men were arrested last week and charged with drugs and firearms offences.
Meanwhile, nine police districts carried out "enforcement activity" in relation to the gang.
The arrests came as part of Taskforce Morpheus, a working group of law enforcement agencies across Australia and New Zealand focused on targeting and disrupting illegal activity by organised criminal groups.
In Tokoroa, Bay of Plenty police searched three addresses with support from the armed offenders squad.
Five firearms, including an AR-15 rifle, were seized along with cannabis and 1kg of a substance believed to be methamphetamine.
Two men, aged 36 and 39, were arrested during the warrants.
National organised crime group director Detective Superintendent Greg Williams said the gang was "one of the top organised crime groups" in Australasia due to their involvement in importing and distributing illegal drugs, including methamphetamine and cocaine.
"They remain a focus for us and, through our investigative work, we continue to find their members and associates involved in a large number of importations, alongside their propension for committing serious violence to maintain control over the market."
Williams said nearly all of the gang's members and associates in New Zealand have been prosecuted – including its entire senior leadership team.
Meanwhile, the Department of Corrections' director for the prisoners of extreme risk directorate, Jeanette Burns, said a "large number of cells" were searched across six prisons nationwide.
"Across those prisons a large amount of tobacco was located, alongside quantities of suspected illicit drugs," she said.
"Some prisoners go to extreme and elaborate lengths to continue offending from prison.
"Corrections does not tolerate any criminal behaviour in our prisons, and we continue to work with our partners to stamp out this offending and the harm it causes to our communities."
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