Armed police guarded the entrance to the Dunedin courthouse and gang members were on the street as two of the eight men arrested following a gang shooting on Sunday appeared.
Ten men were arrested after the clash, although two were later released. Three were due to appear in the Dunedin District Court today. The remainder will stay in police custody until a decision is made on charges.
The two defendants who appeared today were declined bail by judge Stephen O'Driscoll. They have been remanded in custody to Thursday.
Daniel Moana Ryan (45) labourer is charged jointly with three others with unlawful assembly in Allenby Avenue on September 25. The charge is laid indictably.
Tyrone Kamal Henare (19) is charged with disorderly behaviour likely to cause violence in Allenby Avenue.
Ryan and Henare were handcuffed and appeared separately amid tight police security inside the court.
The third man, also facing the joint charge of unlawful assembly, did not appear. Aged 19 and unemployed, he was dealt with by registrar's adjournment and remanded in custody by consent, with interim name suppression, to Thursday.
The 43-year-old man, who was shot in the arm during the clash between the Mongrel Mob and Black Power in Allenby Ave, Pine Hill, remains in a stable condition, under police guard, in Dunedin Hospital.
More than 20 police officers will today continue investigating the clash.
Detective Sergeant Chris Henderson said police yesterday interviewed "a lot" of people about Sunday's fight and last night were still investigating the scene of the shooting. A rifle had been recovered.
Police were trying to establish what sparked the confrontation.
A source said the incident may have been linked to the drive-by shooting of a parked car outside the same Allenby Ave house last year.
A Black Power member later admitted using a shotgun to intimidate people in the house.
Several senior members from both gangs were released from prison late last week, but Det Sgt Henderson said police were unsure if that was related to Sunday's incident.
Friction has previously erupted between the gangs following the release of senior gang members from prison.
Black Power president Albert Epere was recalled to prison in 2009 following gang friction after his release about a month earlier.
It is understood Epere is the man who was shot on Sunday, but Det Sgt Henderson would not confirm this.
Sunday's fight took place near a house occupied by people associated with the Mongrel Mob. The house is about 100m from a Pine Hill Rd house occupied by Black Power gang members.
A resident posted on Facebook the two gangs had been niggling at each other since Friday, children living in the area were scared by what was going on, and families had stayed indoors when there was friction.
Det Sgt Henderson said staff yesterday canvassed the neighbourhood, including a local primary school, to reassure the community that police were working hard on the case and would be watching the area.
Police were last night also still looking for 19-year-old Dylan Hill, who has a distinctive bulldog tattoo on his face.
The Allenby Ave house belongs to Housing NZ. A spokeswoman said it was not evicting its tenants as a result of the incident.
