Author: terry.katz

Comanchero motorcycle gang leader arrested on drug trafficking charges

Global Desk Economic Times of India Last Updated: Apr 10, 2025, 03:25:00 PM IST
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/new-zealand/comanchero-motorcycle-gang-leader-arrested-on-drug-trafficking-charges/articleshow/120151505.cms?from=mdr

Synopsis
Auckland police have apprehended the leader of the Comanchero Motorcycle Gang in Howick, marking a significant breakthrough in combating organized crime. The arrest follows years of investigation into the gang’s alleged involvement in importing methamphetamine and cocaine. This latest action brings charges against every gang member after a year-long probe, disrupting their criminal activities and transnational connections.

The leader of Comanchero Motorcycle Gang, who has taken the designation of national vice-president, was arrested in Howick, Auckland, for alleged involvement in importing methamphetamine and cocaine. After years of investigation, the motorcycle gang leader is now set to face serious charges. The 36-year old man, has a history of importing methamphetamine and cocaine, with charges by the Auckland District Court and the Port of Tauranga in the span of a year.

he club, formed in 1968, is based out of Australia, South East Asia and New Zealand. The gang has been involved in violence and feuds with other biker gangs and is also part of the United Motorcycle Council of New South Wales. The club convened a national conference in 2009 to address problems related to ‘bikie clubs’, but with their poor public image, there was scepticism on their efforts.

There were three attempts at arrest of the Comancheros. The last senior Comanchero leader, who was not previously charged, has also been arrested. Every gang member now faces charges after a year-long investigation. Police Assistant Commissioner Investigations, Paul Basham, said, “The arrest represents a significant milestone in disrupting the gang’s criminal activity”.

“It will be alleged that this man played a significant role in working across transnational organised criminal groups with these importations”, added Basham.

The commissioner said that this is a significant milestone and represents years of relentless investigative work to disrupt and hold the Comancheros to account for criminal activity.

“There is no doubt that this sustained enforcement activity has had considerable impact on the gang’s ability to conduct their offending”, he mentioned.
Investigations revealed that 137 charges were placed after three years of probing and another charge was against five individuals related to drug supply activities.

Salem man with ties to motorcycle gang charged with drug trafficking in California

Ardeshir Tabrizian Salem Reporter April 9, 2025

Salem man with ties to motorcycle gang charged with drug trafficking in California

A Salem man affiliated with the Gypsy Joker Motorcycle Club faces drug trafficking charges after a traffic stop on Interstate 5 in northern California turned up four dozen pounds of methamphetamine.

The Shasta County District Attorney’s Office charged Justin L. Mac, 46, on March 24 with two counts of possession of a controlled substance for sale and two counts of transporting for sale in a “non-contiguous county,” meaning across counties which don’t share borders.

Polk County Circuit Court Judge Rafael Caso identified Mac as the president of the Gypsy Jokers’ Salem Chapter in a 2022 court filing in a divorce case. Mac’s current affiliation with the club couldn’t be established.

Federal prosecutors have described the Gypsy Jokers as a violent outlaw motorcycle gang.

The club is a hierarchical criminal organization in which members maintain their status by participating in “various acts of violent racketeering activity including murder, kidnapping, robbery, extortion, narcotics trafficking, and witness tampering,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a 2022 news release.

The Gypsy Jokers have been active since the 1980s in several states including Oregon and Washington and have international chapters in Germany, Australia and Norway. They operated six clubhouses in the Pacific Northwest “until recently,” federal prosecutors said in the 2022 statement.

The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office provided an account of Mac’s arrest in a media release.

Around 8:30 a.m. on March 20, a California Highway Patrol officer stopped a vehicle headed north on the freeway near Lakehead, about 95 miles south of the Oregon-California border.

The sheriff’s office said the driver was stopped for a traffic violation.

During the stop, the officer used a police dog that alerted to the smell of drugs, prompting a search. Police found about 48 pounds of methamphetamine and about 1 pound of cocaine.

Mac was booked into the Shasta County Jail and subsequently released after posting bail, according to sheriff’s office spokesman Tim Mapes.

The driver of the vehicle was also arrested but was later released after prosecutors failed to file formal charges “within the allotted time,” Mapes said

Mac has a criminal history in Oregon dating back to 1997, including five convictions for possessing a controlled substance between then and 2000, according to state court records.

He pleaded no contest in 2000 in Multnomah County to second-degree robbery and was sentenced to 70 months in prison.

Mac most recently pleaded guilty in 2016 in Multnomah County to harassment and was sentenced to a year of probation. In that same case, he pleaded no contest to driving under the influence of intoxicants, which was dismissed after he completed a diversion program.

Man sentenced for deadly Portland shooting linked to fight between rival motorcycle clubs\
by Ariana St Pierre, WGME April 10, 2025
https://wgme.com/news/local/man-sentenced-for-deadly-portland-shooting-linked-to-fight-between-rival-motorcycle-clubs-aaron-karp-susan-mchugh-manslaughter-maine-crime-gun-violence-higher-calling-fsu-the-outlaws

PORTLAND, Maine (WGME) — A Maine man will spend five years behind bars for shooting and killing a woman in Portland.

Aaron Karp of Naples pleaded guilty on Thursday to manslaughter for the death of 54-year-old Susan McHugh of Gray. As part of a plea deal, the murder charge was dropped.

A judge sentenced Karp to 15 years with all but five years suspended, which means he’ll spend five years in prison.

The shooting happened on July 30, 2024, on Forest Avenue in the parking lot of a mechanic shop. McHugh was killed and three others were injured.

Prosecutors say the shooting happened during a fight between rival motorcycle clubs. Police say they used a dashcam video and two surveillance videos to identify the alleged gunman who shot McHugh.

The incident started at the Brookside Bar in Westbrook. According to testimony, the bar has rules about not wearing biker jackets and vests with club colors.

According to testimony, members of the FSU biker club got upset with the Higher Calling club for wearing their colors, threw some punches and took one of the Higher Calling vests.

Police say Higher Calling members called members of a third club, The Outlaws, who showed up at the Brookside Bar and later confronted some members of the FSU club on Forest Avenue.

Officers testified that seven to nine men wearing Outlaw colors crossed Forest Avenue carrying weapons, including a baseball bat and small sledgehammer, and attacked three members of the rival club.

That’s when police say McHugh fired one shot to defend her husband and the others, causing all the Outlaws to turn and run, until police say Karp fired nine shots at McHugh, with one bullet hitting her in the chest.

Police say someone else picked up McHugh’s gun and returned fire.

Defense attorneys argued self-defense.

VP of Bikers Against Child Abuse arrested on child porn possession charges

The motorcycle charity’s Buffalo vice president ‘would have had opportunities to be around children and child victim,’ police shared

Madeline Sherratt The Independent Thursday 10 April 2025
https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/vice-president-bikers-against-child-abuse-arrested-b2730815.html
The vice president of the Buffalo branch of Bikers Against Child Abuse has been arrested on charges of child porn possession.

John C. Todaro, 49, was arrested Wednesday for promoting a sexual performance by a child and possessing a sexual performance by a child, according to the New York State Police.

Bikers Against Child Abuse, Inc. (B.A.C.A.) pledges “to create a safer environment for abused children”, according to the mission statement on their website.

The tax exempt non-profit also seeks to “empower children to not feel afraid of the world in which they live.”
Police have said thanks to his role within the group, Todaro had opportunities to be around children.

Investigators from Clarence, just northeast of Buffalo, conducted a sweep of the 49-year-old’s electronic devices as part of an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) investigation supported by the Troop A Computer Crimes Unit, according to a statement from the New York State Police. It’s not clear what tipped investigators off.

Todaro was released on his own recognizance and will appear in court in Amherst again in May.

John C. Todaro, 49, of Amherst, New York State has been arrested for promoting a sexual performance by a child and possessing a sexual performance by a child (New York State Police)

New York State Police have asked anyone with information to contact them at 585-344-6200.

The Buffalo chapter was established in 2014. In 2023, the group’s efforts saw them awarded “Bikers Against Child Abuse” month in Erie County.

According to the charity’s website, an abused child can contact the B.A.C.A, where a child liaison first speaks to them.

“The Liaison [then] contacts the family, and an initial ride is organized to meet the child at their home or in some other location where the child will feel comfortable,” according to the website.

The group of bikers designated to that area then rides to meet the child, who is given a vest with a B.A.C.A. patch sewn on the back to wear.

Children who have suffered abuse will then undergo a step-by-step process of being integrated into the group as a “family member” and B.A.C.A members will even attend the court hearings where, if the children are required to testify against their alleged abusers, providing a judge permits it.

However, this is not the first time B.A.C.A members have been tied to child sex abuse crimes.

In 2009, David Wayne Garvey, a member in Houston, was arrested for possession of child pornography. His membership was subsequently revoked. He was sentenced in 2011 to 20 years on four counts of “possession with intent to promote child pornography,” according to court records seen by The Independent.

In 2018, members of the B.A.C.A Sam Bass chapter in Round Rock, Texas, were arrested in July 2018 for 23 counts of abusing foster children in their care, including indecency with a child and injury to a child, according to an affidavit seen by CBS News.

The accused were a married couple, Daniel and Shirley Rodriguez.

A year later, Oklahoma B.A.C.A. member Richard David West, 41, was arrested and charged with lewd or indecent acts or proposals to a child under the age of 16, according to public records seen by The Independent.

The Independent contacted Bikers Against Child Abuse (B.A.C.A) for comment.

Hells Angels prospect arrested in Kelowna in connection with human trafficking

Colin Bayley was arrested in connection to an Ontario investigation of human trafficking

Jacqueline Gelineau Goldstream News Gazette April 9, 2025
https://www.goldstreamgazette.com/news/man-arrested-returned-to-ontario-on-charges-relating-to-human-trafficking-7935367

A man believed to be involved with a human trafficking operation in Ontario was apprehended in Kelowna on April 1, after a Canada-wide warrant for the arrest of Colin Bayley was initiated.

The search for Bayley, 36, began after the Niagara Regional Police Service Human Trafficking Unit in Ontario investigated the alleged trafficking of a woman that took place around the cities of Toronto and Niagara Falls in 2024.

In October 2024, Sascha El-Abiad, who is a full patch member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, and Paisley Rose West McClymont were arrested in St. Catharines, Ontario in relation to the investigation.

At the time, police suspected that a third individual, later determined to be Bayley, was also involved in the human trafficking operation. A Canada-wide warrant was then issued for Bayley on criminal charges of sexual assault, assault, and uttering threats to cause death.

In a collaborative effort between the RCMP Strike Force Team, the RCMP High-Risk Offender Unit, and members of the Kelowna RCMP, Bayley was located and arrested in Kelowna on April 1.

On April 5, the BC Sheriff Service escorted Bayley back to Ontario where he was taken into custody.

“His arrest and return were seamless and great work by all agencies involved,” said the BC RCMP in a statement on April 9.

The RCMP have previously described Bayley as a “known prospect” of the Kelowna chapter of the Hells Angels. In 2019, Bayley assaulted a man in Kelowna and was sentenced to five months in jail for the offence.

Now, Bayley is being held in custody in Ontario pending a bail hearing, which is expected to take place Sunday, April 6.

Due to the nature of the investigation, detectives also believe that there are additional witnesses and are urging anyone with knowledge of the alleged trafficking to come forward. Anyone who may have information related to this investigation is asked to contact detectives by calling 905-688-4111, option 3, extension 1009548.

Detectives also believe that there may be additional victims and/or survivors and are requesting that they contact police to access supports.

Survivors of Human Trafficking are encouraged to contact the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline by calling 1-833-900-1010 or on the internet at canadianhumantraffickinghotline.ca. This is a 24/7 confidential support resource available in over 200 languages.

FHP: Motorcyclist wearing ‘Outlaws MC’ jacket wanted after firing shots at vehicle

By WFLA Web Staff
https://www.wesh.com/article/motorcyclist-wearing-outlaws-mc-jacket-wanted-firing-shots-vehicle/64399698

TAMPA, Fla. —
Florida State Troopers are searching for a motorcyclist who fired several shots at a vehicle on westbound I-4 early Sunday morning.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a 34-year-old St. Petersburg man was traveling on I-4 in Tampa around 2:28 a.m. when he spotted several motorcyclists driving erratically with another vehicle west on I-275.

When the man began filming the motorcyclists with his phone, one of the motorcyclists rode up next to his car and discharged several rounds from a handgun, troopers said.

While several rounds struck the man’s Honda CR-V, he was not injured.

The suspected shooter is described as a white man with a medium build. He was wearing a jacket with the “Outlaws MC” logo, referring to the Outlaws Motorcycle Club.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call FHP at *347 or Crime Stoppers at **8477.

Spanish Police Seize One Tonne of Cocaine in Hell’s Angels Gang Bust
BY ABDULLAHI JIMOHAPRIL 5, 2025
https://newscentral.africa/spanish-police-seize-one-tonne-of-cocaine-in-hells-angels-gang-bust/

Spanish police announced on Saturday that they had dismantled a cocaine smuggling ring linked to the Hell’s Angels, seizing 1,000 kilogrammes (2,200 pounds) of the drug at the eastern port of Valencia.

Spain is a key entry point for cocaine coming into Europe from Latin America.

The operation, coordinated by the European Union’s law enforcement agency, Europol, led to the arrest of 20 individuals, with half of them being remanded in custody.

Arrests were made primarily in Spain, while two suspects were detained in Belgium and one in France.

The arrested individuals were connected to a faction of the Hell’s Angels in Belgium and were largely responsible for overseeing and retrieving drug shipments.

The gang is accused of smuggling cocaine hidden in shipping containers arriving at the port. They used so-called “spidermen” to scale stacks of containers and recover the cocaine, employing bolt cutters or radial arm saws to access the drugs.

Man convicted in Berkshire County triple murder denied appeal
by: Tony Fay WWLP April 1, 2025
https://www.wwlp.com/news/crime/man-convicted-in-berkshire-county-triple-murder-denied-appeal/

PITTSFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – A federal court has denied a request by one of three men convicted in a Berkshire County triple murder to have his conviction overturned.

David Chalue was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder, kidnapping and witness intimidation in the 2011 killings of David Glasser, Edward Frampton, and Robert Chadwell. Chalue filed a petition with the federal court saying that his 6th Amendment rights were violated during his trial in 2014.

The federal court disagreed, finding error in a judge’s jury instructions but saying that didn’t affect the outcome of the case. The information from the Berkshire County District Attorney’s Office states Chalue filed a request based on the following:

The trial judge gave an erroneous instruction to a lone juror and then to the rest of the jurors concerning the reaching of a unanimous verdict.

The United States District Court found that, while this instruction was erroneous, there was not proof that the instructions altered the final guilty verdict. This decision was based on the fact the jury continued to deliberate for a lengthy period following the judge’s erroneous instruction to the lone juror.

The trial judge repeatedly allowed the admission of irrelevant and prejudicial bad-act evidence.

The United States District Court found this challenge to be unfounded. While a photo of a weapon that was not used in the murder was admitted, the Court found that said photo had no effect on the outcome of the trial.

The prosecutor made several misstatements of evidence, inferences, and emotional appeals in his opening statement and summation.
The Court found this challenge to be unfounded.

The District Court also declined to issue a Certificate Of Appealability, blocking any further federal appeal of his claims. Chalue is serving three consecutive life sentences for the murders.

Two other men, Adam Lee Hall and Caius Veiovis, are also serving consecutive life sentences. The Supreme Judicial Court had earlier denied the appeals of Hall and Veiovis.

Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue praised the decision, noting that “these three defendants each received a fair trial and were properly sentenced for crimes that are assuredly among the worst ever committed in Berkshire County.” Shugrue added, “A great team of investigators mounted the single largest investigation in the history of Berkshire County that enabled District Attorney Capeless and his team of prosecutors to present the damning evidence that convinced three juries to return the proper verdicts. An equal effort over the past ten-plus years has been expended to maintain those verdicts, and all involved should have the grateful thanks of Berkshire County’s citizens.”

Verdict in for murder outside Pontiac motorcycle club

Story by Aileen Wingblad, The Oakland Press, Sterling Heights, Mich. April1, 2025
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/verdict-in-for-murder-outside-pontiac-motorcycle-club/ar-AA1C5Xh8?apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1

A Pontiac man with a history of felony convictions was handed a few more Tuesday at the conclusion of a jury trial in Oakland County Circuit Court.

Malcolm Robert Boykin, 56, was found guilty of second-degree murder for the fatal shooting of Charlie Isaac Odneal II, who died March 6, 2024 in an area hospital the day after he was gunned down outside the Night Riders Motorcycle Club in Pontiac. Boykin and Odneal were reportedly acquaintances.

The jury also returned with a guilty verdict for the other crimes Boykin was charged with — assault with intent to murder, felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a concealed weapon and multiple counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Trial got underway on March 24, with Judge Mary Ellen Brennan presiding.

Boykin is scheduled to be sentenced on May 14.

Second-degree murder carries a penalty of up to life in prison, but, unlike a first-degree homicide conviction, has the possibility of parole.

Besides his most recent convictions, Boykin’s criminal history includes drug possession, car theft, weapons-related crimes and armed robbery. He was discharged from his most recent stay in prison in November 2022 — about 16 months before he killed Odneal.

As stated in his obituary, Odneal was known to many as “Isaac,” and was employed as a production worker with Bridgewater Interiors. He was the father of five.

In 2019, another homicide happened at the Night Riders Motorcycle Club when Mecca Ramsey was shot to death inside the club’s bathroom; a second man was also shot and survived. Gregory Kincade was convicted of second-degree murder, assault with intent to murder and several weapons-related crimes. He, too, had a criminal history prior to the shooting and spent nearly two decades in prison before the 2019 shootings. Kincade, 47, is serving a 45 to 80-year sentence at the Muskegon Correctional Facility.

His earliest release date is April 25, 2069.

Two more sentenced in 2022 Marion County motorcycle gang murder

Two more sentenced in 2022 Marion County motorcycle gang murder

FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Two more convicted in the 2022 Pagan Motorcycle Club murder of Henry Silver in Marion County have been sentenced.
Judge Matthew Delligatti sentenced Derek Clem, 30, to life with mercy for first-degree murder and one to five years for conspiracy to commit a felony. Clem was convicted back in September.

Dane Hull, 29, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for a firearm charge and one to five years for conspiracy. Judge Delligatti ordered Hull to serve the sentences consecutively.

Pgana Motorcycle Club member John Wolfe suspected Silver was involved with this significant other and ordered the killing in September of 2022. Prosecutors said Wolfe conspired with others to develop the plan and ultimately murder Silver.

Wolfe was found guilty of Silver’s murder in April 2024 and sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder in June 2024.

On Monday, Austin Mullins was sentenced to 40 years in prison for second degree murder.

A sixth suspect, Ryan Lane is awaiting trial in the case.