Talk:Killer Beez

Gangs in New Zealand
What more in this article sub-section (see below) than is in this new article? What makes this "youth gang" and "feeder gang" notable for its own article? I do not see anything worth more than a list entry and a footnote. Please note that the main gang Tribesmen MC redirects to Gangs in New Zealand and does not have an article on it in Wikipedia. Jrcrin001 (talk) 06:36, 2 October 2012 (UTC)


 * The article has since been significantly expanded, so should we delete this section as the issue is resolved? Thomas Norren (talk) 21:57, 4 September 2022 (UTC)
 * It’s not appropriate to delete old discussions, but sometimes it can be helpful to close them if they’re clearly resolved. (See more at Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines#Closing discussions.) Because this one is a bit messy with the citations I’ll just archive it now. — HTGS (talk) 01:18, 6 September 2022 (UTC)

Tribesmen MC / Killer Beez
The Tribesmen is a prominently Māori motorcycle club formed in the 1980s in Otara, they have a presence in South Auckland and as far south as Rotorua.

The Tribesmen have a feeder youth street gang called Killer Beez (sometimes Killer Bees or Killabeez), possibly a reference to the hip hop group Killa Beez, a name given to Wu-Tang Clan affiliates who also wear yellow and black. Killer Beez was headed by Josh Masters, formerly a vice-president of the Tribesmen gang. Masters was one of 44 people from both gangs arrested in a police swoop in May 2008. In total 60 Killer Beez were arrested an operation which involved 110,000 intercepted messages. Charges included supplying methamphetamine, conspiracy to supply methamphetamine and money laundering. Masters plead guilty but is currently (October 2011) fighting to have that overturned. In 2010 member Latu Savelio Halangingie Kepu killed Jason Palmer, a prison guard in Spring Hill Corrections Facility.

In 2011 Vila Lemanu was the most senior Killer Beez member not in prison, he was on the run for several months before having his conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal and a new trial ordered.

The Killer Beez controlled the record label Colourway Records until all its assets were seized in 2008.