Hells Angels MC Banned from Ponde Compound

South Australia (September 14, 2023) - Hells Angels members will be barred from a regular meeting place after state parliament passed a law designating the property a prescribed place. The Ponde compound, about 100km east of Adelaide, was home to a rock music festival until 2002 but will now be off bounds to club members after the government's latest move to block its use by the bikie gang.

 

"We do not want to see outlaw motorcycle gangs getting a hold back in South Australia," Attorney-General Kyam Maher told reporters on Thursday. "We will do everything that is in our power to make South Australians safer and that includes changing the law very quickly when we need to."

The High Court in August invalidated an attempt by the previous Liberal government to ban the bikies from Ponde, but Mr Maher was adamant his law would face no such obstacles as it amended the legislation itself and was not just a regulation. "What we've done through the passage of this legislation in parliament, is to make it as bulletproof as possible," he said.



The declaration of the site as a prescribed place means any members of a listed criminal organisation cannot visit. But the Law Society of South Australia criticised the bill, arguing it was based on a flawed regime. In a submission to Mr Maher, the society's president James Marsh said the law increased the risk that individuals could have their property unjustly confiscated.

"The society queries the justification in abrogating any citizen's right to procedural fairness," he wrote. Mr Maher said the society's representations "fell on deaf ears." "We will do absolutely everything we can to make sure bikies have as little influence in this state as possible," he said.

In 2019, police found a burnt-out car on the property that had been linked to a bashing murder. At one stage the government tried to seize the land as a criminal asset but later dropped that bid.

Hells Angels MC member being released from prison

Quebec, Canada (September 14, 2023) - One of the most influential Hells Angels MC members in Quebec will be released from a federal penitentiary soon as he nears the statutory release date of the 14-year sentence he received as a result of his guilty pleas in two major investigations into the motorcycle club.

In a decision made earlier this week, the Parole Board of Canada ordered that Marvin (Casper) Ouimet, 54, be required to reside at a halfway house for six months after he reaches his statutory release date. The board imposed several other conditions of Ouimet’s release because he made it clear he is still a Hells Angel and will remain one when he is released.

 

In one case, Ouimet pleaded guilty in Operation SharQc, an investigation that in 2009 resulted in the roundup of almost every member of the Hells Angels MC in Quebec. The probe was based on the theory that almost every member of the club in Quebec was part of a conspiracy to murder rival members of criminal organizations in the province during a war over drug-trafficking turf that stretched from 1994 to 2002.

In the other case, Operation Diligence, Ouimet pleaded guilty to money laundering and other related charges. Ouimet admitted he invested $200,000 to purchase land in Lachute. The plan was to subdivide the land into 100 lots and build bungalows or semi-detached homes on them. Operation Diligence began after the owner of a family business that once replaced Montreal city hall’s copper roof alleged that Ouimet wanted to take control of his company and a masonry firm.

Ouimet’s attempt to take control of the company is mentioned in a written summary of the parole board’s decision.

“All your criminality has been committed for financial gain. You were convicted of being at the head of a network of money laundering and infiltration of the legal economy in the construction industry. Official information reports, among other things, false invoices, under the table payments, transfer of money to tax havens,” the parole board wrote. “The crimes were committed over a significant period of three years  and one of the victims declared having suffered intimidation when you took control of his company.”

Alleged Outcast MC member indicted

Atlanta, Georgia, USA (September 14, 2023) - Attorney General Chris Carr announced Wednesday that a Morrow, Georgia man has been indicted in Clayton County on charges of Trafficking of Persons for Servitude, Violation of the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act, False Imprisonment, Aggravated Assault, Armed Robbery, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony.

 

“Across our state, gangs are actively engaged in human trafficking as a primary means to make money, and we are using all available resources to disrupt their operations and keep our people safe,” Carr said in a news release. “Whether a buyer or a seller, those who abuse and exploit another person will be met with the full force of the law. Our top priority is to protect our fellow Georgians, and that is exactly what we are doing.”

This case was investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Gang Task Force, the GBI’s Human Exploitation and Trafficking Unit, and the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

The Outcast Motorcycle Club is considered an Outlaw Motorcycle Club or a “One-Percenter” Motorcycle Club. The Outcast MC has around 67 chapters across the country, including four in Georgia. Founded in 1967 in Detroit, the second Outcast MC chapter was formed in Atlanta. Additional chapters are located in Augusta, Hawkinsville and Savannah.

In May, Carr’s Gang Prosecution Unit indicted 16 alleged members of the Southeast Georgia Chapter of the Outcast MC in Bryan County. This is considered the largest motorcycle club indictment in state history and its announcement followed the culmination of Operation Patronus, a multi-agency investigation targeting gangs and guns in southeast Georgia and beyond. This operation resulted in the recovery of approximately $180,000 in cash and the seizure of 71 guns, two motorcycles and two cars.


The Attorney General’s Human Trafficking and Gang Prosecution Units presented evidence to a Clayton County Grand Jury, resulting in the alleged member's indictment on August. 30. Specifically, he is facing the following charges:

— 5 counts of Trafficking of Persons for Servitude
— 10 counts of Violation of the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act
— 1 count of False Imprisonment
— 1 count of Aggravated Assault
— 1 count of Armed Robbery
— 1 count of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony.

Hells Angels MC prospect arrested after shooting

Newtonville, Ontario (September 12, 2023) - Two men, including a Hells Angels MC prospect, face numerous charges after a Clarington shooting led to the discovery of 13 guns. On September 9, a man drove to a home in Newtonville in a red Ford pick-up truck. 

The man fired a gun into the home striking a man inside. Durham Regional Police received reports of the shooting and responded to the scene. They found the victim who proved uncooperative with investigators.

 

The next day multiple police units including Guns and Gangs, Biker Enforcement and Tactical Support raided two homes and a car. They found 13 guns during the raids including a modified sub-machine gun, a pistol and silencer, several rifles and shotguns, two extended magazines and ammunition.



Police also arrested two men on multiple charges during the raid. Anthony Psilopoulos, 38 of Clarington, faces six charges including illicit possession and breaching release orders. Investigators say Psilopoulos is a Hells Angels MC prospect. Previous court records from 2019 indicate Psilopoulos ranked as a “hang-around” with the motorcycle club at the time. A prospect is a few ranks higher than a hang-around and one step below a fully patched member.

Additionally, Darryl Kerswell, 51 of Clarington faces five firearms-related offences including possession without a licence and careless storage. Police did not comment on whether the men were held for a bail hearing or released with conditions.