A mysterious and brutally violent street gang called the ’13 Kings’ are believed to be behind the daylight execution of a Comanchero’s associate.
Queensland police are on the hunt for Kyle Martin, 24, and Thomas Myler, 35 after bikie associate Levi Maurice Johnson, 23, was stabbed to death in broad daylight outside a gym in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield on Monday.
It comes as Stuart Galloway, 34, was dramatically arrested by the detectives soon after the attack and another 34-year-old man was slapped with cuffs at a Birkdale home on Wednesday.
Detective Superintendent Andrew Massingham claimed the four men allegedly involved in the brazen attack are members of the little-know ’13 Kings’ street gang, thought be a feeder group for an outlaw motorcycle gang.
Kyle Martin, 24 (left), and Thomas Myler, 35 (right), are wanted for questioning by police in connection to the murder of Comancheros associate Levi Maurice Johnson
Comancheros associate Levi Maurice Johnson, 23, was stabbed to death in an ambush outside a Goodlife gym in Carindale, Brisbane on Monday. He is pictured with his sister, world champion boxer Cherneka ‘Sugar Neekz’ Johnson
‘The gang was not well known or established,’ Supt Massingham stressed.
‘It’s probably a group of individuals with similar interests.
‘There’s some suggestion that this club [13 Kings] may be a feeder group. That’s a line of enquiry that we are exploring.’
Supt Massingham added little further detail about the ’13 Kings’ gang except it was believed to have a ‘presence’ in the Capalaba area, which is a suburb south-east of Brisbane.
‘The person that was taken into custody this morning at the Birkdale address and the two males that are outstanding and also the 34-year-old male, claim to be either members or associates of the 13 Kings gang or group, which is a fairly well unknown group that does have a presence or a clubhouse in the Capalaba area,’ he said.
‘The credibility of those claims is still being investigated. And any claims that that club is linked to any other outlaw motorcycle gang at this stage is supposition only.’
While police suspect they know who was responsible for the gruesome stabbing, their investigations are ongoing.
A motorcycle rider near the gym where Mr Johnson was stabbed to death as police and SES volunteers scour for clues
Cherneka Johnson sat outside the double garage looking shattered, often putting her head in her hands, looking nothing like the fighter who won the IBF super bantamweight title a few months before
Heavily armed officers executed raids on Tuesday night at properties in the suburbs of Ransome and Birkdale but were unable to locate the two men on the run.
‘We were looking for persons that we wish to question in relation to this tragic homicide,’ Supt Massingham said.
‘Those persons last night were not located at those addresses.
‘We make an appeal to them to hand themselves in to the nearest police station.
Martin and Myler are believed to be in the Capalaba, Birkdale or Ransome areas.
Police urged members of the public not to approach either man but to call triple zero.
Police raided another house in Birkdale on Wednesday morning, with a 34-year-old man being taken into custody. He is the second person arrested in connection to the stabbing after Stuart Galloway.
Stuart Galloway, 34, was dramatically arrested by dog squad police who found him hiding in bushes at a reserve just a few hundred metres from the attack
Galloway was the first of the four suspects involved in the attack to be arrested. Another 34-year-old man was taken in custody after police raided his Birkdale home on Wednesday morning
Levi Johnson, whose sister is world champion boxer Cherneka Johnson, was killed after his Mercedes was hemmed in by a black Audi A3 hatchback behind him and rammed from the front by a white Nissan Patrol as he tried to leave the Goodlife gym driveway.
Four attackers smashed his window with a crowbar and he fled through the passenger door, but didn’t get far before one of the men caught up and stabbed him in a frenzy, leaving him bleeding on the road.
Gym patrons and other Good Samaritans desperately tried to save him by staunching the wounds and used a defibrillator to try to revive him after they lost his pulse.
Witnesses described a scene of bloody chaos as he lay across the kerb mortally wounded by numerous stab wounds to his abdomen.
Three of the attackers sped away in the Patrol but the Audi would not start and its driver fled on foot. The police said the two backpacks that were later found nearby came from the Audi.
Mr Johnson’s body lies covered by a tarp (right) at the scene in the aftermath of the assassination om Monday afternoon
Outside, a young man was seen having an agitated phone conversation, pacing around the street gesticulating with his hand. He later collapsed in a heap on the ground until he was coaxed inside by others at the house.
Galloway was dramatically arrested by dog squad police who found him hiding in bushes at a reserve just a few hundred metres from the attack.
The shirtless man surrendered to police and was handcuffed and put into a forensic clean suit to preserve DNA on his body and clothes.
He was charged with one count each of unlawful possession of a revolver, and possessing gun ammunition and explosive without a licence.
Galloway faced Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday morning and he was remanded in custody to appear on September 29.
Supt Massingham said the four men had been surveying Mr Johnson for some time before the attack.
‘These males were extremely motivated to hunt this individual down,’ he said at the scene on Monday.
‘This incident was fully captured on CCTV. I have viewed that CCTV and it is confronting and horrific.
‘We don’t know the motive of what’s occurred, whether there was planning involved or whether there was an incident that escalated in the nearby streets.
‘What was clear was their intent to cause significant harm to this individual.’
Mr Johnson, while not a patched member of the Comancheros still found himself in some trouble. On October 31 last year during a brawl he was stabbed on the Gold Coast at an alleged arson attack
Mr Johnson, while not a patched member of the Comancheros still found himself in some trouble.
On October 31 last year during a brawl he was stabbed on the Gold Coast at an alleged arson attack.
Police alleged at the time that Mr Johnson and an associate were at a unit in Biggera Waters when a fight broke out between them and acquaintances.
He and the other man then allegedly left, only to return armed and with intent to burn the home down. They didn’t get that far though as Mr Johnson was stabbed by a Mongols member.
It is not known whether the brawl and his murder are connected but police are probing the possibility his attackers may be linked to the rival gang.
Mr Johnson was charged with attempted arson and dangerous conduct with a weapon, but both were dropped on September 1 – less than two weeks before his death.
Five days later he pleaded guilty to drug possession and was convicted, but no other punishment was imposed.
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