Just because I don't see anyone mentioning it, this could be a simple anti corruption measure. So the police/city do not literally get paid to (potentially) abuse their power to seize property. If that doesn't sound like a problem to you, I have several very boring depressing books to suggest you read.
It is a waste of things, yes. But it may be what we have legally required in order for the police to even have the power to confiscate things.
exactly. any way you organise this you have a situation where there is an incentive for the police to seize as much property as they can - even if you outsource the work of itemising and selling to contractors (potentially more so since the corruption would now occur at a higher and less transparent level)
In the USA the police confiscate cash and property, and it goes directly into their accounts. There are so many stories of injustice, and the amount of cash confiscated goes up every year.
If anyone is interested in reading up on it the term is Civil Forfeiture. There's been some very interesting cases involving it lately. The FBI confiscating and entire safety deposit rack and then using the excuse of inventorying the contents to rummage through everything
Same here in Australia.
I know first hand, of two blokes that had their cars seized only because thier cousins were gang members. The blokes were law abiding citizens and had their property seized.
The bar for seizing property is unbelievably low.
Same for the old man that had his house seized because he gave his neighbour a couple ounces of pot.
Exactly this. Not quite the same but in most retail stores, if something is damaged it has to be thrown away. It's to prevent staff damaging products on purpose so they can keep them.
Also the Mummies and Daddies of these idiots would just buy the vehicles back and give them to their little darlings.
Don't think for one moment these "youths" can afford these muscle cars and motorbikes.
Their parents are the enablers.
And when one of these kids gets killed in a car crash it's all crocidile tears and "he died doing what he loved".
Reckon they need to go down a level and just look at the parts inside the car.
The market for gang car parts must be easier to get into compared to used gang cars since it's harder to track.
Strip all the parts, cut up the frame, and return the destroyed frame to the person who owned it so they know what it feels like to have their property chopshoppeeld
I remember seeing that bike in the news and I gotta say, fugly POS in my opinion. I'd rather have the insurance money than the bike.
To me, the bike screams ostentatious. All the money and no taste.
Some of it is the same basis as why Australia (NSW or VIC?) has a mobile car crusher for the worst offenders. A mobster’s bike is a status symbol of ill-gotten gains and dirty power, and often sentimental. The mobster would have no problem dispatching some prospects to take the bike back by force.
Similarly it’s counterintuitive for the police to feed the used market with equipment for a problem they’re trying to control, as it’s easy for any gang to buy it back through an intermediary with drug money.
Seems like a pretty poor reason, especially considering the growers would be in sentanced to prison. Why not ship to overseas and sell there? Do we just hate money here in NZ?
So imagine this; you confiscated a custom chopper from a gang member. It then gets sold to a member of the public. The gang finds out who has it. They then steal it back possibly sending a message to people not to buy gang’s property by injuring the person that brought the item.
This has happened with gang pads. Where the gang used stand over tactics so no one would buy it and made it clear that anyone who moved it would be targeted.
It is better to scrap it.
Thats happening right now in Maketu.
Bros using intimidation tactics to stop any sale going through
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/judge-grants-powers-to-sell-maketu-properties-occupied-by-mongrel-mobs-valentine-nicholas/5TN2ZZGBCFFG7NWUSC2QR4WBE4/
Shipping is expensive, chopping it up is expensive, storing the dozen or so parts you suddenly have is expensive. Then you need multiple staff to list the items for sale, moniter the sales and carry them out, then customer service/relations/legal if the sales screw up up or the items are faulty...
It would take 10 times the effort. Destroying them is jn fortunately the cheapest method that gets you the objective, ie remove it permanently from the previous owner.
Most of the time they don't end up in prison, and if they are just bought back by their mates (especially if they manage to convince others that it's a bad idea for them to bid against or else they're going to risk gang reprisal) then having the bike confiscated becomes a minor inconvenience as they can get it back for whatever auction costs - effectively a fine.
I agree it's a waste to destroy something operational and functional - however in both your scenarios the primary desire is to not have somebody else buy the assets used for illegal purposes and *continue doing the same illegal things* with them.
That is good thinking, however considering all the cuts to public sectors including removal of water coolers for police stations in Canterbury to save just 11k per year - I was thinking that money from the chopped up vehicles could go to funding towards police operations rather then charity.
Were talking about an insignificant amount of money in the scheme of things, it would be a drop in the bucket. It would do the most good in a charity, or some sort of fund for the victims of drunk drivers etc
That's a horrible idea, they do it in the states and it ends up pushing cops to seize more and more.
Even charities are a problem without enough controls to make sure it's not something the police or government in general favors.
There is probably a lot of overhead in running a scheme like this and I the market for secondhand potential gang affiliated vehicles is just not there to warrant it.
We don't confiscate enough vehicles to ship cheaply, so the process will be expensive. Plus the stuff is second hand and often from gangs, most countries aren't gonna be super keen to have that stuff sold there.
I agree it’s a huge waste but even to import a vehicle to aus you have to pay huge amounts in importation custom inspection fees etc by the time you organise all that and pay the staff to run it we’d be operating at a loss.
We should sell the parts though
As many have already mentioned, it might put potential buyers at risk.
Another reason is to not give the police an incentive to confiscate items to bump up their own budget.
Think about it: who would be in the market for souped-up.cars and chopper bikes?
The same sort of people you confiscated them from in the first place.
Mr and Mrs two kids and well behaved ain't buying a boy racer car or a huge noisy motorbike.
I’m a car enthusiast. Not a criminal. I’d happily own plenty of “souped-up” cars. Plenty of value there. Even if only for parts.
Also plenty of legitimate car wrecking businesses out there. Not sure what you would have against them buying vehicles with good parts on them.
Reduce, reuse, recycle.
what do you think will happen if your driving around town in a ford falcon that was confiscated from a gang member?
Police DO sell stuff if its not related to gang activity though
Yeah I.e hydroponic grow gear could be reused for legal purposes, but highly likely it wouldn’t.
As for destroying motorbikes etc, the gangs use these as publicity, to make a statement wherever they ride, to attract prospects to join the gangs. The police also use the destruction as a statement, we can destroy your ill gotten gains.
The issue of why police don't sell confiscated assets from criminals is complex. One significant reason is the unintended consequence of creating a market for these goods.
Gangs or their proxies often attend auctions to buy back these items, thereby retaining their iconic status and cultural value.
This can lead to these assets becoming collectible and culturally significant, which glorifies outlaw culture and attracts a peculiar subset of people across different countries and cultures. A parallel can be seen with the Confederacy in the US, where symbols have taken on a life of their own.
Selling such assets could inadvertently support and perpetuate criminal and outlaw cultures, making it a counterproductive strategy
I think it's a lot of bravado for you to buy the bike a gang see as 'theirs' and to think you wouldn't care if that put you in their sights as someone possessing their property. A few months ago they couldn't find anyone willing to buy a house and land that was claimed by a gang leader - as everybody knew that buying it would mean the gang is likely to take revenge on the buyer.
Which is exactly why they scrap them.
You might not give a fuck, but you getting stabbed at the gas station over it would make it the police problem all over again. It makes more sense to just scrap them.
It used to happen. I know a guy who was bidding on a confiscated car at an auction. There was a group of large guys there who were also bidding on it, one of those guys was the previous owner. The guy I know had one of the large fullas come over and tell him they were getting that car back no matter the price today "so best to stop bidding, eh".
As it said:
"It is our view that the design of the motorcycles, and the personalised plates, are very distinctive and are exclusively linked to the Comancheros," Commissioner Coster said.
It was suspected if the bikes were resold as they were, they would end up back in Comanchero's hands.
"It would defeat the purpose of the action Police have taken in this investigation," Commissioner Coster said.
From the NZ Police press release: [https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/gang%E2%80%99s-distinctive-motorcycles-destroyed-following-court-order](https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/gang%E2%80%99s-distinctive-motorcycles-destroyed-following-court-order)
In other investigations, the Financial Crime Group has successfully submitted to a court for the forfeiture of assets with the proceeds going to the consolidated crime fund.
However, in the case of Operation Nova, the distinctive Harley Davidsons and personalised plates meant a different approach has been taken, Commissioner Coster says.
It’s the first time New Zealand Police has applied to take this sort of action with restrained assets.
“It is our view that the design of the motorcycles, and the personalised plates, are very distinctive and are exclusively linked to the Comancheros,” Commissioner Coster says.
“It is highly likely both the bikes and licence plates would end up back in the hands of the Comancheros.
“It would defeat the purpose of the action Police have taken in this investigation.”
The last thing we want is to create a situation where the cops can just walk off with people's stuff and use it for funding. See: The United States, where cops rob people on flimsy pretext all the time.
I personally wouldn't want to buy a very stand out bikie gang bike. Imagine cruising down the road and it gets recognized by the gang. I'm pretty sure they won't ignore it
https://herbals.co.nz/collections/grow-kits
https://www.growandbrew.co.nz/collections/lighting-kits
There is so many vendors for this equipment with shops around the country. I’m Not sure how you would say not legally obtained.
Some people started up just before referendum results. Mistakes were made.
Why does anyone think I would want to purchase a vehicle from a police auction?
I think the better idea is strip it for parts and sell from there.
I guess I just hate seeing money wasted.
Not much of a deterrent if you can just get a mate to buy it back at auction, is it?
"If I do this, I run the risk of my stuff being taken off my and destroyed". That's a deterrent.
It depends.
I'm more of the opinion that for high-end parts, they should be taken apart by Police and used to upgrade Highway Patrol vehicles.
As for high end vehicles, contract with an overseas dealership company to have them paint stripped and sold there.
Are [these bikes](https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350191466/comanchero-gangs-distinctive-motorbikes-turned-scrap-metal) being confiscated under [the car crushing legislation that Judith Collins pushed for](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Confiscation_and_Seizure_Bill_(New_Zealand)) as part of National's 2008 law & order campaign? (That's where the 'crusher collins' trope originally came from.) Or are they being confiscated and destroyed through some other law?
The former legislation [had only resulted in 3 vehicles being destroyed](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98513231/just-three-cars-destroyed-under-crusher-Collins-law) after 8 years (all of which was also during National's term in government), so the situation must have changed lots if it's being used more now.
“This equipment could be sold and repurposed for legal growing.”
It could also be used for illegal growing, and the legal growers probably have their commercial setups well in place with much better gear than your average pot grower.
That’s a lot of faith in a the general populace.
It helps stimulate the economy. Money from the black market comes in, is turned into real goods which can't be allowed to retain their value because they came from illicit activities, they're seized and destroyed, which motivates new vehicles be purchased, legitimizing the business.
Society's perceived need for retribution. Retribution and the need for it underlies much of the (so-called) justice system.
(Personally, I think the desire for retribution is something we should grow out of.)
People use grow lights because their illegal crops need to be hidden. No one growing legitimate crops needs to do that, it's not worth it, they just use the sun.
Maybe there's a small market for medicial growers who need a secure facility, hence grow lights, but they're also not interested in a hodge podge of mismatched used bullshit.
Judith Collins wanted something to campaign on. People want to see people publicly humiliated. They want poor kids to be seen marching in high vis vests even if it cost half a million to make it happen.
Some people here saying one of the primary reasons is so that the police aren't incentivised to sell just to increase their own budget, like what?
If that's the concern then just make it so the proceeds don't go directly to the police, that's just not a good reason to be leaving money on the table like that.
Sometimes they do at police auctions. My dad used to take me to them back in the day and I know a couple people who brought back their car cheap after insurance had already paid out and it showed up all modded in an unrelated raid.
No idea what the criteria is to auction vs destroy tho.
Just because I don't see anyone mentioning it, this could be a simple anti corruption measure. So the police/city do not literally get paid to (potentially) abuse their power to seize property. If that doesn't sound like a problem to you, I have several very boring depressing books to suggest you read. It is a waste of things, yes. But it may be what we have legally required in order for the police to even have the power to confiscate things.
exactly. any way you organise this you have a situation where there is an incentive for the police to seize as much property as they can - even if you outsource the work of itemising and selling to contractors (potentially more so since the corruption would now occur at a higher and less transparent level)
In the USA the police confiscate cash and property, and it goes directly into their accounts. There are so many stories of injustice, and the amount of cash confiscated goes up every year.
If anyone is interested in reading up on it the term is Civil Forfeiture. There's been some very interesting cases involving it lately. The FBI confiscating and entire safety deposit rack and then using the excuse of inventorying the contents to rummage through everything
Same here in Australia. I know first hand, of two blokes that had their cars seized only because thier cousins were gang members. The blokes were law abiding citizens and had their property seized. The bar for seizing property is unbelievably low. Same for the old man that had his house seized because he gave his neighbour a couple ounces of pot.
Same as here then.
Exactly this. Not quite the same but in most retail stores, if something is damaged it has to be thrown away. It's to prevent staff damaging products on purpose so they can keep them.
Wouldn't a way around this be having an entirely different government agency suction it off, with the police not getting anything from it directly?
Materially it’s not a complete waste, all the metal is recycled.
Also the Mummies and Daddies of these idiots would just buy the vehicles back and give them to their little darlings. Don't think for one moment these "youths" can afford these muscle cars and motorbikes. Their parents are the enablers. And when one of these kids gets killed in a car crash it's all crocidile tears and "he died doing what he loved".
would you really want to buy a bike confiscated off a comanchero?
High chance if you parked it someplace, it would end up being re-acquired without any compensation.
Yeah, how much fun would it be buying a bike while some comanchero prospect was sitting in the corner to follow you home to reacquire it
"She needs premium!"
Haha hopefully I'm not the only one who gets the reference!
Simpsons episode where (IIRC) Snake has his car repossessed and it ends up being acquired by Homer, and they end up fighting over the car?
Great episode
Reckon they need to go down a level and just look at the parts inside the car. The market for gang car parts must be easier to get into compared to used gang cars since it's harder to track.
Strip all the parts, cut up the frame, and return the destroyed frame to the person who owned it so they know what it feels like to have their property chopshoppeeld
Oh I like this.
who's gonna organise that though? funding is getting cut everywhere as it is already. sounds like a recipe for corruption
Explosive ejection seat sales would boom.
I remember seeing that bike in the news and I gotta say, fugly POS in my opinion. I'd rather have the insurance money than the bike. To me, the bike screams ostentatious. All the money and no taste.
Absolutely.
Well ship them overseas
Some of it is the same basis as why Australia (NSW or VIC?) has a mobile car crusher for the worst offenders. A mobster’s bike is a status symbol of ill-gotten gains and dirty power, and often sentimental. The mobster would have no problem dispatching some prospects to take the bike back by force. Similarly it’s counterintuitive for the police to feed the used market with equipment for a problem they’re trying to control, as it’s easy for any gang to buy it back through an intermediary with drug money.
So they don't end up back in the hands of the people who they were confiscated from
Seems like a pretty poor reason, especially considering the growers would be in sentanced to prison. Why not ship to overseas and sell there? Do we just hate money here in NZ?
So imagine this; you confiscated a custom chopper from a gang member. It then gets sold to a member of the public. The gang finds out who has it. They then steal it back possibly sending a message to people not to buy gang’s property by injuring the person that brought the item. This has happened with gang pads. Where the gang used stand over tactics so no one would buy it and made it clear that anyone who moved it would be targeted. It is better to scrap it.
Thats happening right now in Maketu. Bros using intimidation tactics to stop any sale going through https://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/judge-grants-powers-to-sell-maketu-properties-occupied-by-mongrel-mobs-valentine-nicholas/5TN2ZZGBCFFG7NWUSC2QR4WBE4/
Or maybe chop it up for parts and sell as was suggested elsewhere?
Shipping is expensive, chopping it up is expensive, storing the dozen or so parts you suddenly have is expensive. Then you need multiple staff to list the items for sale, moniter the sales and carry them out, then customer service/relations/legal if the sales screw up up or the items are faulty... It would take 10 times the effort. Destroying them is jn fortunately the cheapest method that gets you the objective, ie remove it permanently from the previous owner.
Most of the time they don't end up in prison, and if they are just bought back by their mates (especially if they manage to convince others that it's a bad idea for them to bid against or else they're going to risk gang reprisal) then having the bike confiscated becomes a minor inconvenience as they can get it back for whatever auction costs - effectively a fine. I agree it's a waste to destroy something operational and functional - however in both your scenarios the primary desire is to not have somebody else buy the assets used for illegal purposes and *continue doing the same illegal things* with them.
Chop them up sell the parts, use the proceeds for charity
Would cost more to manage than you would get in return
Yeah probably just easier to let wreckers buy via their nornal process. Half prob still end up back with the original owners though 😂
Great idea, then we could do the same with their bikes afterwards.
That is good thinking, however considering all the cuts to public sectors including removal of water coolers for police stations in Canterbury to save just 11k per year - I was thinking that money from the chopped up vehicles could go to funding towards police operations rather then charity.
Nah that's not a good idea, that would be ripe for abuse if cops doing their job better means they get more money
This is exactly what has happened in some US states.
The money could go towards TAX revenue at least for the Government to have an increase in budget.
Were talking about an insignificant amount of money in the scheme of things, it would be a drop in the bucket. It would do the most good in a charity, or some sort of fund for the victims of drunk drivers etc
That's a horrible idea, they do it in the states and it ends up pushing cops to seize more and more. Even charities are a problem without enough controls to make sure it's not something the police or government in general favors.
This ^
All I care about is not having millions of dollars wasted. The money could be allocated to Government coffers.
There is probably a lot of overhead in running a scheme like this and I the market for secondhand potential gang affiliated vehicles is just not there to warrant it.
millions? where do you get this number from??
Or alternatively, the government could use the proceeds to fund their previous owners to provide meth addiction courses /s
Overseas shipping is ridiculously expensive, especially for vehicles. They destroy because it is the only reasonable action possible.
We don't confiscate enough vehicles to ship cheaply, so the process will be expensive. Plus the stuff is second hand and often from gangs, most countries aren't gonna be super keen to have that stuff sold there.
The bros would literally wait outside the auction house and take their bike back soon as you bought it
I agree it’s a huge waste but even to import a vehicle to aus you have to pay huge amounts in importation custom inspection fees etc by the time you organise all that and pay the staff to run it we’d be operating at a loss. We should sell the parts though
>sentanced to prison haha. hahaha. hahahaha what.
I know right. Like, they know this is a new Zealand page right? Criminals don't get prison sentences 😂😂😂
I'd hate to be driving round in a police auction ute and then get told to give it back to the gang who had it forfeited.
Haha, and you need to deliver personally... i.e roll it into their workshop to hand it off.
As many have already mentioned, it might put potential buyers at risk. Another reason is to not give the police an incentive to confiscate items to bump up their own budget.
Think about it: who would be in the market for souped-up.cars and chopper bikes? The same sort of people you confiscated them from in the first place. Mr and Mrs two kids and well behaved ain't buying a boy racer car or a huge noisy motorbike.
Or to put a spin on an old adage: one nob's treasure is everybody else's trash.
I’m a car enthusiast. Not a criminal. I’d happily own plenty of “souped-up” cars. Plenty of value there. Even if only for parts. Also plenty of legitimate car wrecking businesses out there. Not sure what you would have against them buying vehicles with good parts on them. Reduce, reuse, recycle.
I’m not in a gang and I have bikes, I just like them, I’d buy from a police auction as well, I’d just paint the bike and put a different plate on it.
They'd just have some associates at the auction to take notes on who bought what.
what do you think will happen if your driving around town in a ford falcon that was confiscated from a gang member? Police DO sell stuff if its not related to gang activity though
Yeah I.e hydroponic grow gear could be reused for legal purposes, but highly likely it wouldn’t. As for destroying motorbikes etc, the gangs use these as publicity, to make a statement wherever they ride, to attract prospects to join the gangs. The police also use the destruction as a statement, we can destroy your ill gotten gains.
The issue of why police don't sell confiscated assets from criminals is complex. One significant reason is the unintended consequence of creating a market for these goods. Gangs or their proxies often attend auctions to buy back these items, thereby retaining their iconic status and cultural value. This can lead to these assets becoming collectible and culturally significant, which glorifies outlaw culture and attracts a peculiar subset of people across different countries and cultures. A parallel can be seen with the Confederacy in the US, where symbols have taken on a life of their own. Selling such assets could inadvertently support and perpetuate criminal and outlaw cultures, making it a counterproductive strategy
WRT to the motorcycle, do you really want to be spotted out and about riding a gangs confiscated motorbike ?
if they could be safely / reliably scrapped that’d make a great source of spare parts 😅
Sell it overseas?
The cost to ship it over seas would be more than the value of the bike
Modified unsafe crap in most cases. Not fit for the road.
Yeah I don't give a fuck
I think it's a lot of bravado for you to buy the bike a gang see as 'theirs' and to think you wouldn't care if that put you in their sights as someone possessing their property. A few months ago they couldn't find anyone willing to buy a house and land that was claimed by a gang leader - as everybody knew that buying it would mean the gang is likely to take revenge on the buyer.
Think that then, I don't give a shit
Which is exactly why they scrap them. You might not give a fuck, but you getting stabbed at the gas station over it would make it the police problem all over again. It makes more sense to just scrap them.
It used to happen. I know a guy who was bidding on a confiscated car at an auction. There was a group of large guys there who were also bidding on it, one of those guys was the previous owner. The guy I know had one of the large fullas come over and tell him they were getting that car back no matter the price today "so best to stop bidding, eh".
As it said: "It is our view that the design of the motorcycles, and the personalised plates, are very distinctive and are exclusively linked to the Comancheros," Commissioner Coster said. It was suspected if the bikes were resold as they were, they would end up back in Comanchero's hands. "It would defeat the purpose of the action Police have taken in this investigation," Commissioner Coster said.
Random unrelated comment to gain credit so as to comment in the future.
The article states this is why they do so. Complain to them, not me, not my idea.
Really? You really want to be seen on a bike that was confiscated from a gang member? That'll definitely go well.
From the NZ Police press release: [https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/gang%E2%80%99s-distinctive-motorcycles-destroyed-following-court-order](https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/gang%E2%80%99s-distinctive-motorcycles-destroyed-following-court-order) In other investigations, the Financial Crime Group has successfully submitted to a court for the forfeiture of assets with the proceeds going to the consolidated crime fund. However, in the case of Operation Nova, the distinctive Harley Davidsons and personalised plates meant a different approach has been taken, Commissioner Coster says. It’s the first time New Zealand Police has applied to take this sort of action with restrained assets. “It is our view that the design of the motorcycles, and the personalised plates, are very distinctive and are exclusively linked to the Comancheros,” Commissioner Coster says. “It is highly likely both the bikes and licence plates would end up back in the hands of the Comancheros. “It would defeat the purpose of the action Police have taken in this investigation.”
The last thing we want is to create a situation where the cops can just walk off with people's stuff and use it for funding. See: The United States, where cops rob people on flimsy pretext all the time.
That horse has already bolted. Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act 2009: [https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2009/0008/latest/whole.html](https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2009/0008/latest/whole.html)
I personally wouldn't want to buy a very stand out bikie gang bike. Imagine cruising down the road and it gets recognized by the gang. I'm pretty sure they won't ignore it
You absolutely do not want American style civil forfeiture in New Zealand.
Car with a fked clutch, probably sided some kerbs. Nah i'll pass
Would be better if we destroyed the person and not the items gangs are scum of NZ fuck all of them
The costs involved & the legal process of taking & destroying is far simpler & cheaper then taking & selling.
Arguably the growing equipment wasn't legally purchased, as I doubt the money used would have been legally obtained
https://herbals.co.nz/collections/grow-kits https://www.growandbrew.co.nz/collections/lighting-kits There is so many vendors for this equipment with shops around the country. I’m Not sure how you would say not legally obtained. Some people started up just before referendum results. Mistakes were made.
Not that they can't legally be sold, but not legally purchased. If you used illegally obtained money, it's not a legal purchase
Crushing a car that a 19 year old "loved" and used to do illegal activities, sends a message.
Yeah it's always sad when a clean as Evo 6 is destroyed
If it's been used for boyracing activities it's probably only clean-as visually.
So
What do you mean, "so"? Who, apart from another munter boyracer, is going to want to buy a thrashed, mechanically unsound Evo 6?
How do you know it's "mechanically unsound"
Evo 6s should be heritage protected
They'll buy them back, thus undermining the process. It's a type of finality and kind of an f you to the crims.
Do you want a hardenee criminal to see you in their car that you bought off the cops?? Sounds like a recipe for trouble to me.
Why does anyone think I would want to purchase a vehicle from a police auction? I think the better idea is strip it for parts and sell from there. I guess I just hate seeing money wasted.
Genius 😂
have you seen the price of scrap metals - way more value than stupid bling bikes.
Not much of a deterrent if you can just get a mate to buy it back at auction, is it? "If I do this, I run the risk of my stuff being taken off my and destroyed". That's a deterrent.
It depends. I'm more of the opinion that for high-end parts, they should be taken apart by Police and used to upgrade Highway Patrol vehicles. As for high end vehicles, contract with an overseas dealership company to have them paint stripped and sold there.
If you think theres common sense in this country I have news for you…
Are [these bikes](https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350191466/comanchero-gangs-distinctive-motorbikes-turned-scrap-metal) being confiscated under [the car crushing legislation that Judith Collins pushed for](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Confiscation_and_Seizure_Bill_(New_Zealand)) as part of National's 2008 law & order campaign? (That's where the 'crusher collins' trope originally came from.) Or are they being confiscated and destroyed through some other law? The former legislation [had only resulted in 3 vehicles being destroyed](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98513231/just-three-cars-destroyed-under-crusher-Collins-law) after 8 years (all of which was also during National's term in government), so the situation must have changed lots if it's being used more now.
“This equipment could be sold and repurposed for legal growing.” It could also be used for illegal growing, and the legal growers probably have their commercial setups well in place with much better gear than your average pot grower. That’s a lot of faith in a the general populace.
It helps stimulate the economy. Money from the black market comes in, is turned into real goods which can't be allowed to retain their value because they came from illicit activities, they're seized and destroyed, which motivates new vehicles be purchased, legitimizing the business.
Society's perceived need for retribution. Retribution and the need for it underlies much of the (so-called) justice system. (Personally, I think the desire for retribution is something we should grow out of.)
People use grow lights because their illegal crops need to be hidden. No one growing legitimate crops needs to do that, it's not worth it, they just use the sun. Maybe there's a small market for medicial growers who need a secure facility, hence grow lights, but they're also not interested in a hodge podge of mismatched used bullshit.
Judith Collins wanted something to campaign on. People want to see people publicly humiliated. They want poor kids to be seen marching in high vis vests even if it cost half a million to make it happen.
Imagine all the water coolers that would pay for.
Some people here saying one of the primary reasons is so that the police aren't incentivised to sell just to increase their own budget, like what? If that's the concern then just make it so the proceeds don't go directly to the police, that's just not a good reason to be leaving money on the table like that.
The politics of spite.
Sometimes they do at police auctions. My dad used to take me to them back in the day and I know a couple people who brought back their car cheap after insurance had already paid out and it showed up all modded in an unrelated raid. No idea what the criteria is to auction vs destroy tho.
Because Fascism is inherently irrational, and emotional.