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Executed standover man Gavin ‘Capable’ Preston was warned by the Comanchero bikie gang to remove a large and visible club tattoo from his head before his murder because he was not an official “patched” member.

The outlaw motorcycle gang has joined the lengthy list of organised crime groups in dispute with Preston before he was ambushed and shot dead outside a cafe on Saturday.

Preston had spurned repeated offers to join bikie gangs in the past, but had declared his loyalty to the Comancheros inside prison by having the gang’s insignia tattooed on the back of his shaved head.

The diamond shaped tattoo depicted the outlaw motorcycle symbol “1%” and contained the initials ACCA: “Always Comanchero, Comanchero Always”. The “1%” designation signifies that the outlaw motorcycle club is involved in hardcore criminality.

Gavin “Capable” Preston was tattooed with the motto of the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang.

The “ACCA” motto is held as a pledge to observe and obey the rules of the gang and its leadership. Getting one is supposed to signify undying loyalty to the club.

But like so much with Preston, he took liberties well beyond what was acceptable in the underworld code.

Police sources not authorised to speak publicly say Preston had the tattoo done but never officially patched into the Comancheros, a breach of rules that attracted the ire of the club.

At the time of his murder, Preston had been told by members of the club to get the tattoo removed.

Bikie gang members who transgress club rules have been known to have their tattoos forcibly removed or covered on their bodies.

The warnings had become especially urgent because of Preston’s actions since his release from prison in April, embarking on a rampage of violence including extortions, robberies and bashings that reaped a windfall of cash and ill will.

The Age spoke to 10 underworld and police sources to paint a picture of Preston since his release from jail.

They said Preston targeted other underworld figures, drug dealers and quasi-legitimate businessmen with demands for money over debts he claimed he was owed or were once owed to former partner-in-crime Nabil Maghnie, who was executed in January 2020.

Maghnie’s son Abbas Junior “AJ” Maghnie was also shot and wounded alongside Preston during the hit at the Keilor cafe on the weekend.

Preston also attempted to muscle in on a lucrative extortion racket being waged against Melbourne’s tobacco retailers that have involved more than a dozen firebombings since rival organised crime gangs began fighting over the tobacco trade earlier this year.

“Preston was crazy out of control. He took and took and ripped people off. He’d get violent at the drop of a hat over anything,” an underworld source said.

Preston was shot and killed in Keilor on Saturday.Credit: The Age

Preston has had longstanding relationships with members of the Comancheros and associates of the club. But he’d been building a new crew separate from the Comancheros – despite the blatant statement tattooed on the back of his head.

Underworld sources say that Preston’s unhinged behaviour was especially provocative for the Comancheros because it was done while he continued to wear the symbol of membership so prominently without permission.

“Preston wasn’t listening to anyone. He was all about: I don’t do what you tell me, I do what I want,” an underworld source said.

Preston was picking fights with players from across the criminal spectrum, including being linked to the serious bashing of a close associate of convicted murderer and drug trafficker George Marrogi.

Preston’s long-standing feud with Marrogi and his now-defunct gang Notorious Crime Family included threats to attack Marrogi’s younger brother, who had been in a relationship with Nabil Maghnie’s daughter.

Preston is also considered in underworld circles as one of the two prime suspects that might have ordered the botched attempted theft of the body of George’s sister Meshilin Marrogi from the Preston Cemetery in late July.

Along the way, Preston had caused enough trouble for someone in the gangland world to put out a contract on his life more than two months ago. By the time Preston sat down for breakfast at the Keilor cafe on Saturday, he was surrounded by enemies whether he sported the tattoo or not.

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