Iron Horsemen MC Members trial to begin Jan 30
GEORGETOWN, Ohio (January 13, 2017) – Almost 10 months
after an alleged altercation at an Aberdeen, Ohio, night spot, four of five men
charged with alleged gang, assault and riotous activities are heading to a
bench trial.
According to the indictments of Wesley A. Gibson, 34 of
Hillsboro, Ohio, Robert Bowling, 59, of Cincinnati, John A. McIntosh Jr., 49,
of West Union, Ohio, and Franklin Delano Griffith, 36, of Manchester, Ohio, the
incident happened on April 17, 2016.
A fifth man is already serving his sentence. Lawrence
Wayne Allen Jr. entered a guilty plea to a count of aggravated riot, in August
2016, and was sentenced to two years of probation.
All five are members of the Iron Horsemen Motorcycle Club
of Cincinnati, who allegedly approached the business doorman at approximately
1:30 a.m., and were denied entry.
The business worker was allegedly assaulted and Aberdeen
police and EMS were called to the scene.
The worker and one of the bikers were taken to a hospital
for treatment, police said.
Aberdeen police filed the original complaint...
Security camera image from April 17, 2016
“We reviewed the security video and compared the
timelines to determine who was doing what,” said Aberdeen Police Chief Fred
Hampton, in April 2016. “We then took what we had to the Brown County
Prosecutor, who also reviewed the video and decided to move forward with
charges.”
According to Ohio Revised Code 2917.11, a riot is
considered disorderly conduct with four or more individuals where violence is
involved.
In October 2016, Brown County Prosecutors office
requested to join the remaining four cases for trial purposes, which was
approved by mutual agreement of the defendants' attorneys and ordered by Judge
Scott Gusweiler, court officials said.
“The four cases are being tried at one time, in front of
the judge, without a jury,” said Brown County prosecutor Zac Corbin. “The trial
begins Jan. 30.”
All four are charged with second-degree participation in
criminal gang, second-degree felonious assault with a criminal gang activity
specification; fourth-degree riot with a criminal gang activity specification;
misdemeanor assault; first-degree misdemeanor trespass; and fourth-degree
misdemeanor aggravated criminal trespass.
According to police, security video at the scene helped
identify alleged participants in the incident.
SOURCE: The Ledger Independent