Comancheros bikie boss Mark Buddle has been deported from Turkey and is in police custody in Australia.
Buddle is suspected of being involved in major drug shipments to Australia and is a person of interest in the 2010 murder of NSW security guard Gary Allibon.
SEE THE ARREST FOOTAGE IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE
Buddle left Australia in 2016 and has been living in various locations in the Middle East since then.
He is expected to face court on Wednesday.
Buddle is suspected of having moved to Northern Cyprus to avoid extradition to Australia, where he faces questioning about his alleged involvement in drug and murder investigations.
Northern Cyprus is not officially recognized by any country other than Turkey and does not share an extradition treaty with Australia.
Buddle took over the leadership of the Comancheros in 2009 when former boss Mahmoud “Mick” Hawi was jailed over a fatal brawl at Sydney Airport.
Hawaii was later shot dead outside a gym in Sydney.
Buddle fled Australia in 2016 after being named a person of interest in the murder of a security guard and has evaded authorities ever since.
In 2010, 59-year-old Gary Allibon was shot in the back during the early-morning robbery of a cash-in-transit van on Sydney’s Sussex Street.
It is understood he had handed over a cash box and had his hands in the air when he was shot.
Buddle is believed to have been one of the focus points of police investigations — although no charges have been laid.
For several years, Buddle lived with long time partner Melanie Ter Wisscha and their two children in Dubai.
Last year, video surfaced of Buddle in an altercation with tourists at a Dubai pool.
Soon after, he left the country and the Sydney-born fugitive is believed to have traveled to Turkey, Greece and Iraq, before finally settling in Northern Cyprus.
In 2021, Cypriot newspaper Kibris Gercek reported Buddle had been granted residency by high-ranking politicians until August 6, 2022.
The reason for the residence permit was reported to be his “high income”.
A statement by the interior ministry said police had later determined Buddle’s presence was “inconvenient in terms of public peace and security”.
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