Mongrel Mob

Mongrel Mob

A Mongrel Mob member with his patch tattooed onto his face
Founded	1962
Founding location	Hastings, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand
Years active	1960s–present
Territory	New Zealand, Australia
Ethnicity	Mixed, predominantly Māori and Polynesian
Membership (est.)	1,000+
Criminal activities	Drug trafficking, weapon trafficking, extortion, prostitution, assault, murder, robbery, theft and money laundering
Allies	Bloods, Storm Troopers, Rebels MC
Rivals	Black Power, Crips, Road Knights, Satans Slaves, Tribesmen, Killer Beez, Nomads

Mongrel Mob is an organised street gang based in New Zealand that has a network of more than thirty chapters throughout the country. They are especially active in King Country, Opotiki, Waikato and Hastings. The Mongrel Mob's main rival is the Black Power gang and there have been several very public and violent clashes between the two gangs over the years.

The gang began with a group of mainly European youths from Wellington and Hawke's Bay in the 1960s. Legend within the gang holds that the name originated from the comments of a judge in the Hastings District Court, who referred to a group of men before him as "mongrels". Whatever the origin, the group embraced the term. By the late 1960s loose groups of rebellious young men in Wellington and Hawke's Bay were calling themselves Mongrels. By 1966 they were wearing patches bearing the name ‘Mongrel Mob’.

By about 1970 the Mongrels were also known as the Mongrel Mob, and the gang had expanded to include numerous Māori. Members consider Hastings in Hawke's Bay to be the gang's "Fatherland" or birthplace, and the gang first became known for its violence in Hawke's Bay. Later, similarly named groups sprang up around the country, forming their own independent chapters.

In the 2000s and 2010s, the Mongrel Mob is expanding into parts of Australia.

According to Te Ara; in 2010, there are over 30 recognised chapters of the Mongrel Mob; including,

Mongrel Mob colours are predominantly red and black. The patches usually feature a swastika and a British Bulldog wearing a German Stahlhelm, which supposedly is an image intended to offend as it is a British Bulldog wearing the helmet. The full implications of these images are not clearly understood or accepted by bearers of these well known symbols of German Fascism and Holocaust of World War Two. This is a consistent source of 'misunderstanding' with regard to international visitors to New Zealand. The patch is worn on the back of "patched members" – those considered 'loyal' and 'trustworthy' enough to be in the gang. The patch will also be tattooed on the member's body. Mob members are 'known for their tattooed faces and red bandannas.