Category: Gangs in the news…

Central Washington Motorcycle Gang Leader Convicted in Walla Walla

Walla Walla Regional Drug and Gang Taskforce
September 20, 2024

bigcountrynewsconnection.com/local/central-washington-motorcycle-gang-leader-convicted-in-walla-walla/article_d372d32c-7797-11ef-8ce8-0339d8dedee1.html

WALLA WALLA — On Wednesday, September 18th, jurors convicted 52-year-old John Smith of College Place, Washington, on two counts of Assault in the Second Degree, each classified as a class B felony. These convictions are tied to a robbery incident that took place in Walla Walla in March 2023.

During the incident, Smith threatened two employees of PetSmart with what appeared to be a firearm. Smith’s accomplice, Christopher Peters, age 30, of Walla Walla, was armed with a bat during the altercation and was also convicted on related charges. Peters had fashioned the bat into a club, which was decorated with symbols, colors, and lettering consistent with the Pagan’s Outlaw Motorcycle Gang (OMG).

At the time of the incident, Smith was the President of the Pagan’s OMG’s Walla Walla chapter. The Pagan’s OMG, known for its violent and intimidating culture, has been active in the Walla Walla region for approximately three years. This conviction adds to a series of legal actions involving members of the group at both state and federal levels, connected to serious assaults and illegal firearms possession.

Following the conviction, Smith was remanded into custody. His sentencing is scheduled for October 7, 2024.

Fatal Portland shooting began with fight between rival motorcycle clubs

Morgan Womack Press Herald Portland Maine September 20, 2024

Fatal Portland shooting began with fight between rival motorcycle clubs

A deadly shooting in Morrill’s Corner this summer started with a fight between two motorcycle clubs at the back patio of a bar in Westbrook, investigators told a judge on Friday.

Aaron Karp, wearing a blue buttondown shirt, entered the courtroom in Cumberland County Superior Court on Friday for his bail hearing. Behind him, community members filled almost three full pews, quietly listening to the investigator testify and watching surveillance videos from that night. It was the first time details of the case have been discussed publicly; police have largely kept quiet since the shooting, citing the ongoing investigation.
Karp, 47, faces one count of intentional or knowing murder in the death of Susan McHugh, 54. She was one of four people injured on the night of July 30 and later died at the hospital from a gunshot wound to the chest.

The lead detective in the case spent hours on the stand Friday recounting the investigation, which included talk of rival gangs, two-pound mini-sledgehammers, a police-style baton and switchblade found at the scene, and a mother defending her child.

Karp is being held without bail at the Cumberland County Jail after turning himself in to police last month.
Friday’s hearing was scheduled to determine if he should be given bail and the possibility of release. Many of his friends and family had submitted letters to the court asking for bail. The judge did not make a decision Friday.

DETECTIVE’S INVESTIGATION

On July 30, Travis Frechette and Troy McHugh – Susan McHugh’s son and husband – were with William Holmes at Brookside Food and Drink in Westbrook when a few men, some of whom were wearing logos for Higher Calling, a local biker group police say is affiliated with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club, arrived, according to surveillance videos obtained by Portland detective Jeffrey Tully.

Tully testified at the hearing Friday that Frechette, Troy McHugh and Holmes are associated with another motorcycle club, called FSU. He said the argument began because the owner of Brookside didn’t want customers to wear their club colors.

The surveillance video from the bar showed Holmes approaching the Higher Calling members, “put his hands” on one of the men and remove his vest, Tully said. Then Holmes and Frechette assaulted another man and Holmes took a gun from one of the men and handed it to Troy McHugh, who stripped the rounds out of the magazine and threw it on the table, according to the detective.

Once Frechette, McHugh and Holmes left the bar, the Higher Calling members were seen on video making several phone calls. Shortly afterward, Karp arrived on his motorcycle with a few others, Tully said.

Karp, who was wearing a watch, baggy blue jeans and a sleeveless vest, pulls a wrench from his saddlebag and puts it in his pocket. Another man was carrying a “mini sledgehammer,” the detective said. Tully, pointing to a map, said they must have overheard Holmes saying he was headed to Samuel’s Bar and Grill because the Outlaw members drove to the parking lot of Rosemont Market and Bakery on Stevens Avenue.

The group walked through the Samuel’s parking lot and across Forest Avenue toward Meineke Car Care Center, where Troy McHugh, Frechette and Holmes were parked with Susan McHugh and Frechette’s girlfriend.

The foggy black and white surveillance footage from Meineke shows the three men falling to the ground after being assaulted by the Outlaw group, Tully said. In the background, Susan McHugh appears to crouch next to the truck before firing a single round from her husband’s gun at the Outlaw members, who then ran across the street, the detective said.

Karp had tripped, Tully said, and stood up to fire nine rounds at Susan McHugh. Only one bullet hit her, while the eight others damaged the windshield of another car.

Frechette picked up his father’s gun and fired eight rounds toward Karp and the group. None of those rounds appeared to hit anyone either, Tully said. Frechette’s girlfriend then called 911 around 8:45 p.m. but Karp and the others had left the scene. One man who police said is associated with the Outlaws, Kristofer Haken, was grazed by a gunshot and found by first responders across the street.

In an interview last month, Frechette said his mother was a hero that night and “did anything she could to keep her children safe.”
Troy McHugh and Holmes were brought to the hospital with skull fractures. Neither man could recall who shot Susan McHugh, police said.

‘WE NEED HIM’

Karp’s motorcycle was later found at his ex-wife’s home on Colley Hill Road in Gray, which was searched on Aug. 2. He turned himself in to police on Aug. 8.

Before Friday’s hearing, Karp’s friends and family submitted passionate statements to the court asking that they consider bail as an option.

“Despite the charge against him, I would still give him the key to my house and ask him to take care of my pets and property if I went on vacation or was traveling for business,” Jim Fahey, a retired police officer wrote in a statement.

Karp’s mother described him as a loving, dependable son and father to his children.

“Without my son Aaron, I don’t know where I would be now,” Bobette Karp wrote.

She said Karp supported her during various medical issues she faced.

“I am very aware of the severity of the charges against my son,” Bobette Karp wrote. “I know he is as well. Please see that bail will be set so Aaron can return to his family. We need him.”

NJ men indicted in murder plot connected to Pagans biker gang

https://nj1015.com/nj-men-pagan-club-tie-michael-vulpis-freehold-indicted-attempted-murder-jackson-shooting/

A grand jury in Ocean County has indicted three men on charges for what prosecutors have dubbed an attempted murder over the summer in Jackson.

Michael Vulpis, of Freehold, has been in jail since July 3, when he was arrested for shooting a 27-year-old man in the face.

Vulpis and 24-year-old Noah Phelps, of Monroe, were indicted for attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the June 27 incident.

The 26-year-old Vulpis has been a known member of the Pagans Motorcycle Club, NJ.com reported in August.

The report said that the man shot in the face was rumored to be a former member of the club who had been kicked out.

Law enforcement did not publicly confirm a connection in this case to what a State Commission of Investigation report referred to as the “Pagans Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.”

In Monmouth County, issues of Pagan Motorcycle Club violence in a residential neighborhood was what prompted one Freehold man to run for local office this November, according to his online candidate profile.

“We had Pagan Motorcycle Gang members set up shop on our street. We reached the point where our children were afraid to go outside,” Michael Murphy, an independent candidate said. “We had as many as 25-30 gang members here at any given time. They walked our streets with baseball bats and axe handles in hand. They urinated in our streets. They surrounded a mother and her young daughter in their own driveway. They sped and tailgated through our streets. There an assault in broad daylight in front of children.”

Vulpis has also been indicted for possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon, being a certain person not to possess a weapon or ammunition, and conspiracy to commit witness tampering.

Meanwhile, a 32-year-old Jackson man has been indicted on charges for pressuring the same surviving victim to lie to police, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said.

Glenn Franzson was indicted for conspiracy to commit witness tampering, as well as possession of a weapon without a serial number, possession of a high-capacity ammunition magazine, possession of cocaine, and possession of methamphetamine.

Duo accused of plotting to kill Jackson victim

On June 27, around 12:20 a.m., Jackson police responded to a reported shooting along Larsen Road.
Officers found a 27-year-old man who had been shot in the face. He was rushed to an area hospital.

Investigators found the man had been sitting with a woman in a parked vehicle outside of a home when a blue sedan approached and blocked in the first car.

Two men, later identified as Vulpis and Phelps, got out and knocked on the victim’s window. When he got out, he was hit and then shot, Billhimer said.

Third defendant accused of trying to get victim to lie

Detectives have said while Vulpis was in jail, he plotted with Franzson to get the shooting victim to lie to police.

When law enforcement searched Franzson’s home, they recovered a ghost gun with a high-capacity magazine, plus methamphetamine and cocaine, prompting the other charges.

Billhimer has said the investigation is a joint effort involving local, county and federal law enforcement in both Ocean and Monmouth County.

Hamilton ‘outlaw’ motorcycle gang members arrested for robbery and assault, police say

Five men were charged in relation to a robbery that took place in July in Hamilton

Samantha Beattie · CBC News · Posted: Sep 20, 2024
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/motorcycle-gang-arrest-1.7329271

Five men who police say are members of “outlaw” motorcycle gangs have been charged in connection with a robbery that took place in Hamilton in July.

Four members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and one member of the Red Devils Motorcycle Club were arrested Aug. 21 by Hamilton police and Ontario Provincial Police (OPP)’s Biker Enforcement Unit, said the OPP in a news release Friday.

It was part of an investigation that began after a person was assaulted at an “establishment” on July 4, and robbed of their personal items, said police.

“Outlaw motorcycle gangs continue to be involved in violent occurrences throughout our communities,” said OPP Det.-Insp. Scott Wade in a statement.

The two police forces also executed search warrants at the homes of the accused as well as the Hells Angels and Red Devils’ clubhouses in Hamilton, the OPP said.

Officers found four shotguns, three rifles, a shotgun barrel, ammunition, body armour and a gun licence, said police.

All five men, whose ages range from 34 to 51 years old, were charged with assault causing bodily harm and robbery, police said. Two are from Hamilton and the rest are from Brantford, Toronto and Grimsby.

One of the men was also charged with breach of a probation order and unauthorized possession of a prohibited device, said police. Another was also charged with breach of firearms storage regulations.

The Hells Angels Hamilton chapter started in 2005 and is one of 14 in Ontario. The gang has about 6,000 members worldwide. The Red Devils are a support club for the Hells Angels.

Police said they consider outlaw motorcycle gangs to be criminal organizations “whose activities cause harm and victimization in communities across Ontario.”

The motorcycle gangs have been known to participate in fraud, drug trafficking, extortion, intimidation and murder, police said.

1,000 Mongols Motorcycle Club members expected in Palm Springs; traffic likely

Sam Morgen Palm Springs Desert Sun September 19, 2024

The Palm Springs Police Department estimates over 1,000 members of the Mongols Motorcycle Club will visit the city this weekend, prompting an increased law enforcement presence.

The group, which is defined by the U.S. Department of Justice as an “outlaw motorcycle gang,” is coming to Palm Springs as part of their national run, a gathering where various chapters of the club meet. Police say club members will stay in two hotels in the city and the exact number of attendees is not known.

“Please be aware of potential traffic delays in the downtown corridor, along Palm Canyon Drive and Indian Canyon Drive, extending to the northern city limits,” the department said in a news release.

The Mongols have visited the city several times in large numbers over the past decade, although their past meetings have not seemed to cause much chaos. No stories of mayhem or increased crime linked to the Mongols can be found in The Desert Sun archives over the past few years.

Still, the Justice Department says outlaw motorcycle gangs engage in violent crime along with weapons and drug trafficking. After starting in Southern California in 1969, the club has expanded internationally. It has a notable presence in Australia.

Palm Springs police say international members of the Mongols have visited Palm Springs in the past.
In addition to ground forces, the police plan to deploy a California Highway Patrol helicopter to monitor the gathering.

Sam Morgen covers the city of Palm Springs for The Desert Sun. Reach him at smorgen@gannett.com.

Nearly every member of the Comanchero motorcycle gang in New Zealand facing criminal charges

Rnz.co.nz 5:22 pm on 17 September 2024
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/528226/nearly-every-member-of-the-comanchero-motorcycle-gang-in-new-zealand-facing-criminal-charges

Nearly every member of the Comanchero motorcycle gang in New Zealand is facing criminal charges after a three-year police investigation.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said a total of 137 charges have been laid against the gang’s members and associates.

These included 17 “office” holders, 10 patched members and 14 gang prospects.

Since 2021, police had seized 206 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1.76 kilograms of cocaine and 2.6 kilograms of cannabis.

Police also recovered $1.275 million in cash, $9.2 million in assets, restrained five properties and 14 vehicles, including motorbikes.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said the disruption and dismantling of the gang would make a big dent in the Comanchero’s ability to conduct significant serious criminal offending moving forward.

“From the very beginning, there has been a multi-agency effort to continuously target, disrupt and enforce criminal activity that has been taking place,” he said.

“This has resulted in significant criminal prosecution cases as well as assets and profits being stripped away from their grasp.”

Police worked alongside Customs, Corrections and Inland Revenue as part of the investigations.
The Comancheros gang insignia was taken down from its Christchurch headquarters in Woolston a week after the city’s entire chapter was arrested.

It was the culmination of an eight-month investigation, called Operation Avon, that targeted regular cash and drug runs between Auckland and Christchurch.

Police said the Comancheros were responsible for the majority of Class A drugs coming into Canterbury, as well as money laundering and a ‘commission’ scheme to fund military-style training.

The charges were the result of four phases of the investigation.

In July 2021, the National Organised Crime Group commenced phase one, dubbed Operation Scuba, which primarily investigated money laundering.

“The operation terminated in March this year, resulting in 11 people being charged,” Coster said.

In total, $5.8 million worth of assets were restrained, including two properties- one of them being the gang’s ‘Southside’ pad in Weymouth, police said.

The second phase, Operation Brewer, was a joint operation between police and Customs that resulted in 200 kilograms of methamphetamine being found hidden in farm machinery.

Operation Avon, the third phase, targeted regular cash and drug runs between Auckland and Christchurch.
In the investiagtion’s most recent phase, Operation Embargo, investigators sought evidence about a directive allegedly sent out to Comanchero members three years ago ordering members to follow rules being set up around the ‘commission’.

“This commission processes allegedly raised funds to purchase a gang pad, two businesses as well as purchasing of firearms,” Coster said.

“Police will also allege that these funds were being used to carry out military-styled training of 15 of its members by a trainer brought into the country for this purpose.”

Total results since 2021:
• 206kg of methamphetamine seized
• 1.76kg of cocaine ($657,500 in social harm)
• 2.6kg of cannabis
• 15 firearms
• 1184 rounds of ammunition
• five properties
• 14 vehicles, including motorbikes.
• 41 Comanchero patches
• $9.2 million in assets restrained and $1.275 million in cash
• more than 250 electronic devices seized

Police said the military-style training took place in Auckland and Northland, but that they could not go into more detail because the matter was before the court.

Speaking at the police stand-up, Detective Superintendent Greg Williams said the Comancheros were seen across Australasia as the most dangerous gang, partly because of their propensity for violence.

“[There is a] case before the court right now where we will allege the Comancheros attempted to kill a member of a Comanchero [gang] that tried to leave the Comancheros.”

“So it gives you an idea of the level of violence they’re prepared to operate in.”

Williams said this was also shown by the gang’s commandments, which police recovered.

“They say that ‘once a Comanchero always a Comanchero’ and that if you leave the gang then you will be put in a body bag, unless you find God, but if you’re caught operating in the underworld they’ll put you to sleep.”

Williams said police believed there were about 92 Comanchero members in the country right now.

He said from that group, police believed only 11 were not actively facing some form of criminal charge.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell said the Comancheros had used their shiny brand to recruit members, while inflicting misery on people through selling drugs and using violence to intimidate.

He said there was a difference in the way gangs were being policed.

“We want to give them more powers and more tools because we just want to continue to ratchet this up, this is really just the start.

“We’re a small island nation, these gang members and organised crime groups are responsible for way too much of the violent crime and organised crime that we see in our country.”

Rhode Island Hells Angels figure in prison after mob wake

Tim White Updated: Sep 13, 2024 / 11:59 AM CDT
Newsnationnow.com/crime/rhode-island-hells-angels-figure-in-prison-after-mob-wake/?utm_campaign=NewsNation-trending-now&utm_source=dcnewsnow.com&utm_medium=newsnation-cross-brand

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – The former head of the Providence chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle club is back behind bars after attending the wake of a top New England crime family figure.

Joseph Lancia, 33, of Smithfield, was taken into custody Friday by the R.I. State Police Violent Fugitive Task Force. An administrator for the state parole board confirmed Lancia is back at the Adult Correctional Institution, accused of violating the conditions of his early release.

Lancia was sentenced to five years behind bars in 2022 for shooting at a rival outside the biker gang’s Providence headquarters, and for a separate case where he was charged for knocking out a bouncer at the Cadillac Lounge strip club.

Last year, the parole board agreed to let Lancia out of prison early under certain conditions, including having no contact with Hells Angels members, or being an officer of the club, as well as not having contact with convicted felons. He was released from the ACI in June.

Lancia was spotted at the wake of the late Edward “Eddie” Lato, the reputed underboss of the Patriarca crime family. Among the other attendees were several people with criminal records, as well as fellow Hells Angels members, and at least two members of the Red Devil’s Motorcycle Club, a support group of the Hells Angels.

An associate of attorney Joseph Voccola – who has represented the former biker gang president in previous criminal cases – provided Target 12 with an email where Lancia asked permission of his parole officer to attend the wake.
“The wake Tuesday is for Eddie [L]ato, I am going alone with no club members,” Lancia wrote. “Eddy was a family friend.”

The following day, the parole officer responded, “approved!”

It will be up to the parole board to determine if any contact Lancia had at the wake or elsewhere violated the conditions of his early release.

Matt Degnan, the administrator for the R.I. Parole Board, said a violation hearing is scheduled for October. Meanwhile Lancia will remain in state custody at the ACI.

Lato, a longtime member of the New England crime family who eventually rose to the second in command, died late last month after battling cancer. He was 77.

Former R.I. State Police Col. Steven O’Donnell, a law enforcement analyst for 12 News, said it’s not surprising Lancia was at the wake despite the legal jeopardy it may have placed him in.

“Eddie Lato was always really the major conduit with all the Hells Angels for years,” O’Donnell said. “Joe Lancia and any other Hells Angels are just showing deference and respect to the passing of Eddie Lato.”

For decades the Hells Angels and the Patriarca crime family have forged an alliance, O’Donnell said, partnering on underworld activities like shaking down strip clubs for protection money.

“It’s a huge connection,” he said. “Sometimes you think outlaw bikers and La Cosa Nostra operate differently. They don’t. It’s in their interest to cooperate and collaborate.”

Historically biker gang members have also provided protection for Mafia figures and acted as muscle in collecting outstanding debts.

O’Donnell said it’s common law enforcement practice for investigators to conduct surveillance at high-profile services, like Lato’s wake.

“Every person involved in organized crime activity knows the state police monitor multiple different public events,” he said.
Lisa Holley, Lancia’s attorney handling the parole violation, declined to comment when reached via email.

Lancia had just over a year left on his sentence when he was released, meaning he could be ordered to remain behind bars through next fall if the board finds he is a violator.

The main case against Lancia stems from a June 2019 incident when police said he fired a gun at a truck driven by Richard Starnino – once a prospect to join the biker club – who was involved in an ongoing dispute with Lancia.
Investigators said video surveillance shows Lancia shooting at the truck as Starnino was driving by the Hells Angels Providence headquarters on Messer Street. The video – which was the main evidence against Lancia – was from the clubhouse’s own security system.

The investigation into the shooting led to a dramatic daytime raid by the R.I. State Police.
According to police, while out on bail in that case, Lancia punched a security member of the Cadillac Lounge strip club, who struck his head on the ground and was knocked unconscious.

Lancia eventually pleaded no contest to the gun and assault charges.

‘Seven Deadly Sins’ biker gang founder kills seven people and dog

Frederic Allen Rogers of Alabama sentenced to life in prison without parole

By Michael Ruiz Fox News September 14, 2024
https://www.foxnews.com/us/seven-deadly-sins-biker-gang-founder-kills-7-people-dog

An Alabama man who co-founded a biker gang called the “Seven Deadly Sins” has been convicted of gunning down seven people – some of whom were members of the motorcycle club – and a dog.

Frederic Allen Rogers, 26, admitted to killing the four men among the seven victims, investigators testified at trial.

Jurors recommended a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole Wednesday after less than three hours of deliberation, AL.com reported.

Prosecutors wanted the death penalty.

Rogers and his alleged accomplice John Michael Legg, 23, were arrested in Oregon when Marion County deputies pulled them over more than two weeks after the massacre.

Deputies arrived at a home in Valhermoso Springs in early June 2020 and found three people dead in the garage – one of them on fire, according to the station. There were four more people dead in other parts of the home.

The victims were later identified as Valhermoso Springs residents Tammy England Muzzey, 45; Emily Brooke Payne, 21; and Dakota Green, 17; Roger Lee Jones Jr., 19, of Decatur; Jeramy Wade Roberts, 31, of Athens, and William Zane Hodgin, 18, of Somerville.

All seven had been shot multiple times, and so was a dog, authorities said. Green, the youngest victim, had also been stabbed, according to local reports.

As prosecutors showed hundreds of crime scene photos in court, Rogers shook in his seat, the Huntsville-based FOX 54 reported.

Authorities recovered dozens of spent casings at the scene, which had been set on fire in an alleged attempt to destroy evidence.

Legg, who has not yet gone to trial, faces additional escape charges after he allegedly tried to escape the Morgan County Jail, records show.

He did so while wearing a “trusty” uniform – the clothes of another inmate assigned to oversee fellow prisoners – according to the Decatur Daily.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

OPP arrest 3 in connection with biker gang-linked drug trafficking in eastern Ontario

CTVNewsOttawa.ca Sept. 9, 2024
https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/opp-arrest-3-in-connection-with-biker-gang-linked-drug-trafficking-in-eastern-ontario-1.7031057

Ontario Provincial Police say three people have been arrested following a lengthy investigation into biker gang-linked drug trafficking.

Several officers, including members of the OPP Biker Enforcement Unit, searched properties in Long Sault, Ingleside and Cornwall on Thursday, Sept. 5, following a five-month long investigation. Police seized cash, a Taser, imitation firearms, machetes, suspected cocaine and Loners MC items.

Three men, between the ages of 33 and 78, are facing drug trafficking charges.

Two of the men were released on a promise to appear in court. The other, who is facing five counts of failure to comply with a probation order, remains in custody.

Start of trial against Hells Angels giants in Vienna
Nachrichten
11.09.2024 14:02

Extortion of protection money, assault and revival of activity – the list of charges against the three members of the Hells Angels is long. However, they left their leather jackets and motorcycles at home for the start of the trial in Vienna’s regional court. But not their temperament: the first accused German gives the presiding judge one snotty answer after another …

With grim expressions, the three men take their seats in the dock in the large jury courtroom. They’ve left their motorcycles and their logo-emblazoned jackets at home for the trial. Only the tattoos from head to toe give a clue as to which group they belong to: Two of them are members of the Hells Angels, one says he is a “supporter”.
“Either you pay or we’ll be back!”

According to the Vienna public prosecutor’s office, the three of them and nine other unknown members of the rocker group are said to have caused a disturbance in a pub in the district of Ried im Innkreis (Upper Austria) on September 17, 2023. They are said to have seriously injured the owner, the DJ and an uninvolved guest. “Either you pay or we’ll be back”, they verbalized a protection racket, according to the indictment.

But that is not the reason why the German and the two Upper Austrians are sitting before a jury in Vienna’s regional court. They are also accused of re-activation under the Prohibition Act, the third defendant (31) of punching a member of the hostile motorcycle gang “Bandidos” and the first defendant, the Hells Angels giant, of a particularly shocking attack: out of nowhere, he punched a woman hard in the face in a restaurant garden.
Hitler salute and Nazi slogans in the holding cell

However, he was only charged with committing a criminal offense while fully intoxicated – according to the expert opinion, the almost two-metre tall German was not sane due to the consumption of alcohol and Valium. However, the 38-year-old was sane again when he threatened officers after his arrest and accused them of mistreatment in police custody. Where he gave the Hitler salute several times and shouted Nazi slogans.

The subject of Hells Angels has no place here at all. In Austria, this is nothing more than an association of motorcyclists.

His defense lawyer Philipp Wolm announces right at the beginning that his client will plead guilty to these charges in full – but not to racketeering. “What we have here is a classic case of mistaken identity. He has an alibi. When this happened, he was on a romantic vacation with a lady at a spa.” Photos would also prove this.
Romantic weekend during protection racket

However, the presiding judge confronted the 38-year-old with the fact that there was no evidence from restaurants and the like, nor had he entered the spa area on that day. The snotty answer: “I just needed an attractive hotel room for three hours.” And the Hells Angels member was also uncooperative in other respects. “Did you know that there is something like a prohibition law in Austria?” – “I didn’t know. I know now,” was the terse reply.

Otherwise, the German, who has lived in Austria for 13 years, refers to the statements of his lawyer Philipp Wolm. It is important for him to emphasize one thing in particular: “The Hells Angels issue has absolutely no place here. In Austria, this is nothing more than an association of motorcyclists. He may belong to them. But he is actually a gangster rapper by profession.” And the defense lawyer for the third defendant, Andreas Mauhart, also explained to the jury that these are working men and family men who “while others are eating chips on the couch in the evening, are working on their works of art in the garage.” But by no means serious criminals.

No one is to blame for racketeering

The 38-year-old Upper Austrian only pleaded guilty to one punch. “The two simply don’t like each other”, says Mauhart. The second defendant (50) is completely innocent. During a house search in the course of the large-scale raids against the rocker scene, two glasses with depictions of Hitler were seized from him “I forgot them”, said the father of two in court. He was also not present at the racketeering raid.

Several trial days have been scheduled for a large number of witnesses. If convicted as charged, the rockers could face up to ten years in prison.

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