Tributes Pour in for Hells Angels MC Member

Wallsend, Newcastle, England (April 25, 2025) - A South Shields mum has paid a devastating tribute to her husband, Chris Brown, 37, who tragically died following a motorcycle crash on Stephenson Street in Wallsend on April 7, 2025.

Chris, a father of two and supervisor at Smulders, suffered critical injuries when his Harley-Davidson collided with a van. Despite being rushed to the RVI by air ambulance, Chris passed away three days later. 

 

Image: Northumbria Police

His wife Stacey, speaking with deep emotion, said: “Our kids are not going to see their king again. It broke me in two.” Chris, a proud member of the Hells Angels, was described as “a proper, genuine, nice person” and “a family man who would do anything for anyone.” His passing has shaken the South Tyneside community, with Stacey adding: “Anybody who met him loved him.”

She added: “My brother worked with Chris and was the first on the scene because he was travelling just behind him in the car. “When I got the call from my brother, I knew that something that happened to Chris and my heart just sank. I could tell that it was bad.

“Chris was a very experienced rider – he had ridden bikes since he was around seven years old. You’d never expect something like this to happen to someone who’s so experienced. “He used to have sports bikes when he was younger but as he got older, he got into Harleys and that’s when he joined the Hells Angels.”

In his memory, Stacey is taking on the Three Peaks Challenge on June 21 – the Summer Solstice – a dream they once shared together. Over £13,000 has already been raised for Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Charity through a fundraiser Stacey launched in Chris’s honour.

Chris’s funeral will take place on May 10, 2025 with more than 600 bikes expected to join in tribute. “Please remember to hold your loved ones close,” Stacey says. “You never know what’s around the corner.” A fundraiser has been set up at: gofundme.com/f/chris-last-hike

Outlaws Motorcycle Club Member Arrested

St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada (April 25, 2025) - A major drug trafficking investigation has led to the seizure of over 100 kilograms of suspected cocaine and the arrest of four individuals, including a full-patch member of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. The three-month investigation, launched in January by the OPP-led Biker Enforcement Unit, focused on suspected drug trafficking by outlaw motorcycle gang members in St. Catharines.

 

With support from Niagara Regional Police, York Regional Police, and Halton Regional Police, the probe uncovered a trafficking network moving cocaine from the Greater Toronto Area to Nova Scotia. On April 4, 2025, police executed a search warrant at a home in Richmond Hill, seizing approximately 101 kilograms of suspected cocaine and more than $215,000 in cash.

Additional warrants executed the same day at two St. Catharines residences uncovered oxycodone tablets, five ounces of suspected cocaine, a money counter, and more Canadian currency.

Four individuals from St. Catharines now face a total of eight drug trafficking-related charges.

Randy Mcgean, Sherry Stillwell, and Cody Soulliere, all residents of St. Catharines, have each been charged with:

 
1. Possession of proceeds of crime 

2. Possession for the purpose of trafficking – cocaine

David Crothers of St. Catharines was arrested and charged with:

 
1. Possession of proceeds of crime 

2. Possession for the purpose of trafficking – cocaine

The estimated street value of the drugs seized is $10.1 million.

Source: Toronto Sun

Co-owner of Poopy's biker bar murdered

Savanna, Illinois, USA (April 23, 2025) - Police in Clinton, Iowa, identified Shelly Leab, co-owner of Poopy’s, the “biggest biker bar in Illinois as the victim in a murder-suicide on Friday. Authorities said Brian Witherspoon, 57, shot Shelly Leab, 52, and then himself. 

Source: Facebook 

The pair was found during a welfare check at a home on Pershing Boulevard, around 12:30 p.m. The family said Leab’s body was found in the home along with her ex-fiancé.

The Iowa medical examiner performed autopsies Monday and said Leab died from multiple gunshot wounds and ruled her death a homicide. Witherspoon died from a single gunshot wound. His death was ruled a suicide.

Hell Angels MC San Jose

 

Black and White photo of San Jose Hells Angels Motorcycle Club

No date listed

Alleged Mongols MC Member Charged with Murder

San Bernardino County, California, USA (April 16, 2025) - A alleged member of the Mongols Motorcycle Club was charged Tuesday with murdering a member of the Vagos Motorcycle Club in what federal prosecutors say is an escalating conflict between the two Motorcycle Clubs.

Julian Pulido allegedly shot to death Vicente Sandoval on March 4th at the Firewater Bar in Ontario, according to a complaint unsealed Tuesday and San Bernardino County coroner’s records. A second alleged Mongols MC member, Clifford Lavoy, is accused of choking Sandoval before he was killed. Lavoy pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of assault in aid of racketeering and is being jailed without bond.

 

Sandoval’s killing was the latest flame up in a three-year conflict between the Mongols and the Vagos that, according to court records, included a shooting at a Hooters restaurant, a brawl at a Harley-Davidson store in Marina del Rey and a homicide allegedly committed by a paraplegic Vagos MC member who rode a three-wheeled motorcycle.

The officer wrote in the complaint that Mongols leaders maintain an “arsenal” of assault rifles, handguns, shotguns, knives and bulletproof vests in their downtown Los Angeles headquarters. The Mongols allegedly kept the cache of weapons to use against rivals, including the Hells Angels, Outlaws, Sons of Silence and Vagos.

Prosecutors trace the Mongols’ conflict with the Vagos to December 19, 2021, when the latter club held a memorial for a dead member at a Hooters in Riverside. Some Mongols showed up and a fight broke out, the officer wrote. Shooting erupted from both sides. By the time Riverside police arrived, everyone had fled — but blood on the ground indicated someone had been wounded, the complaint says.

Street gatherings continued

 

Black and White photo of various motorcycle during an event 

Vice President of Bikers Against Child Abuse Arrested

Buffalo, New York, USA (April 11, 2025) - The vice president of the Buffalo chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA) was arrested Wednesday for sex crimes against children, according to New York State Police. John Todaro, 49, of Amherst, was allegedly found to be in possession of child pornography following an Internet Crimes Against Children investigation. He was also disseminating child pornography, officials said.

 

Police said Todaro would have had opportunities to be around children in his role. The BACA website says at least two members must be present to meet with a child to protect against accusations of child abuse. Background checks are necessary to become members. Todaro was charged with promoting a sexual performance by a child and possessing a sexual performance by a child.



The Buffalo chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse said in a statement it is "deeply troubled" by the charges. "The reported actions represent a serious breach of the values and mission we uphold. Such behavior is unacceptable to our organization and stands in direct violation of our strict code of conduct." the chapter said in a statement. "Upon learning of the allegations, our leadership took immediate and decisive action to permanently remove the individual from our organization."

He was released on his own recognizance and is expected back in court in May.

Outlaws Motorcycle Club Member Sentenced

Naples, Maine​, USA (April 10, 2025) - A judge in a Cumberland County court sentenced a Portland tattoo shop owner to 15 years, with all but 5 suspended, for last summer's fatal shooting of Susan McHugh. Aaron Karp will spend 5 years in state prison with 4 years probation after agreeing to plead guilty to a lesser manslaughter charge.

Karp originally faced an intentional or knowing murder charge. According to the judge's decision Thursday morning, if Karp misbehaves, breaks a no contact order or violates his probation he will serve the full 15 years.

 

Last July, 48-year-old Karp shot and killed 54-year-old McHugh during what police and prosecutors say was a brawl and shootout involving rival motorcycle clubs. The violence broke out near Morrill's Corner in Portland at 1155 Forest Ave., across the street from Almost Famous Tattoos & Piercings, which Karp owns. His defense had argued in previous hearings that Karp was firing in self defense.

RELATED | Outlaws MC member charged in deadly shooting

Eighteen gunshots can be heard in surveillance video near the shooting, and people can be seen scurrying for cover. Three others were shot and injured that day. Karp, who turned himself in to police on August 2, is one of seven defendants connected to this case.



The other six defendants — Caleb Pelkey, Kaleb Cidre, James Moody, Nathan Walsh, Kristofer Haken and Jason Kennan — face elevated aggravated assault charges and will all be tried together. A judge agreed to a joinder request in March after attorneys argued that holding six separate trials over many months would lead to "lots of logistical issues."

Hells Angels Motorcycle Club Prospect Arrested

Kelowna, BC, Canada (April 9, 2025) - A one-time prospect of the Kelowna Hells Angels Motorcycle Club was arrested earlier this month on an outstanding assault warrant out of Ontario. In a press release Wednesday morning, the BC RCMP said 36-year-old Colin Bayley was arrested by the Kelowna RCMP on April 1. Bayley was wanted on an Ontario warrant for an alleged assault and he was returned to Ontario on April 5. The Kelowna RCMP collaborated with the BC RCMP Fugitive Return Program in finding Bayley.

 

While the RCMP did not provide details about the allegations against Bayley, the arrest was made in partnership with the Niagara Police Service Human Trafficking Unit and the Ontario Provincial Human Trafficking Prosecution Team. “The BC Fugitive Return Program appreciates the consideration and efforts of all the police and partner agencies involved to coordinate and apprehend this offender to face his charges,” said Staff Sgt. Kris Clark of the BC RCMP. “His arrest and return were seamless and great work by all agencies involved."

RELATED | Hells Angels MC Clubhouses Seized by Court

Bayley was previously sentenced in Kelowna to nine months of jail for an aggravated assault inside the old Doc Willoughby's Pub in May of 2019. During his sentencing, surveillance footage from inside the downtown Kelowna bar showed Bayley repeatedly punching a man at a table, even after the man was clearly unconscious. He then dragged the man outside the front door of the pub and left him on the sidewalk, before walking back into the bar. "It was like you were just throwing a piece of meat onto the street,” said Justice Gary Weatherill after viewing the footage.

While Bayley and the victim had not met prior to that night, Bayley's lawyer said the altercation began after the victim had said something about Bayley's infant daughter. Bayley had been wearing a distinctive black vest with a red “British Columbia” patch on it, which Crown prosecutor Erin Miller said identified Bayley as a prospective member of the Hells Angels.

As part of the police investigation into the assault, officers raided the former Kelowna Hells Angels clubhouse, which has now been demolished. Miller said Bayley's affiliation with the Hells Angels influenced some witnesses' willingness to cooperate with the prosecution. The status of Bayley's affiliation with the Hells Angels was not mentioned during his sentencing back in 2021.

SOURCE: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Biker caught on video in highway drive-by shooting

Tampa, Florida, USA (April 8, 2025) - 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.