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Sunday, December 3, 2017

Kingsmen MC clubhouse showdown explained in bail hearing

Buffalo, NY (December 2, 2017) — Andre Jenkins was eager to distance himself from his murder of two fellow Kingsmen MC members in North Tonawanda, NY on a late summer day in 2014, when he hopped on his motorcycle and returned to the clubhouse in Tennessee, according to prosecutors.

But what greeted Jenkins was far from a welcome home party.

Inside, the Kingsmen also known as Little Bear discovered a scene right out of "Sons of Anarchy": a room covered in plastic and several Kingsmen Motorcycle Club members pointing guns at his head, prosecutors say.

Kingsman MC Patch

Jenkins pleaded for his life.

"He kept saying, 'Call Pirk, call Pirk, call Pirk," Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi said during a court appearance last week.

The call was made, Tripi said, and Kingsmen President David Pirk, the man accused of orchestrating the double murder in North Tonawanda, ordered the Tennessee chapter members to back off.

"Pirk gave the stand-down word, and they let Jenkins go," Tripi told U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer.

Pirk's intervention on behalf of the man who eventually went to prison for killing Daniel “DJ” Szymanski and Paul Maue is proof that he planned and directed the murders, prosecutors allege.

Jenkins, who is also charged in the federal case, is serving life without parole.

The story of Jenkins' confrontation in Tennessee, revealed during a recent court appearance, is the latest development in a federal prosecution that cast a spotlight on the local and national biker scene.

At the core of the case is the allegation that the Kingsmen went from a small motorcycle club, founded in Lockport 60 years ago, to a violent outlaw gang.

Prosecutors say Pirk was the driving force, not only behind the murders, but behind the club's transition to a “one-percenters” club.

With Pirk's trial only six weeks away, it's clear the government's chief target is the 66-year-old North Tonawanda native with the distinctive long white hair and beard.

Obviously, his defense doesn't buy the federal prosecutors' theory.

"The government argues that because he ordered the Tennessee chapter to stand down, he's guilty of a crime," said William T. Easton, one of Pirk's defense lawyers. "It seems they got it backward."

Two years in the making, the trial before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford is the culmination of a case that rocked the local biker community.

Before the indictment early last year, the Kingsmen patch — a gold knight’s helmet and red feather — was a common sight in Western New York. Yes, there were other biker clubs here, but none as large or with roots as deep in the community as the one with the motto, “Live Kingsmen, Die Kingsmen.”

Pirk, a Florida resident, and 15 other Kingsmen were charged in the original grand jury indictment. Five of those defendants took plea deals, and some may testify against Pirk and the other Kingsmen on trial.

From the start, there were questions as to whether any Kingsmen would turn against the club, but the defendants who took plea deals acknowledged the club was a criminal organization that sold drugs and guns, and followed a strict chain of command with Pirk at the top of the hierarchy.

The two killings stemmed from a split in the Kingsmen between club members in Western New York who didn’t want to be one-percenters and the guys in Florida who did, according to the FBI.

Investigators say the murders were also a warning to Kingsmen thinking of leaving the gang for a rival club, the Niagara County-based Nickel City Nomads.

At every step in the prosecution, Pirk's lawyers — Easton and Cheryl Meyers Buth — have argued that he had nothing to do with the murders. He also pleaded not guilty to the other charges against him.

In custody since his arrest in March of last year, Pirk continues to be the subject of widespread media attention, and often the news accounts of his criminal prosecution come with a copy of his mug shot.

Easton and Meyers Buth have pointed to the pre-trial publicity in an effort to move Pirk's trial to Rochester.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, continue to argue that Pirk was instrumental in planning and carrying out the killings, and that Jenkins acted on his orders.

Kingsman MC Clubhouse

It was during a bail hearing early last week that prosecutor Tripi revealed the story about Jenkins' near-fatal confrontation in Tennessee and Pirk's alleged role in protecting him.

"It sounds a little too dramatic," said Michael S. Deal, one of Jenkins' lawyers, of the plastic on the floor and drawn guns. "But regardless, it doesn't implicate my client in any way."

Tripi said the Tennessee chapter knew Jenkins had been in Buffalo but didn't know about Pirk's involvement in the murders.

He also said Jimmy Ray Fritts, the Kingsmen who was seeking bail last week, was one of the Kingmen pointing a gun at Jenkins' head that day in 2014.

"They put him in a clubhouse, put a gun to his head and said they were going to kill him," Tripi said of Jenkins.

At that point, according to the government, Jenkins pleaded with his fellow Kingsmen to call Pirk, and that's when Pirk gave the order to stand down.

Tripi said phone records will verify the calls and that a government witness is prepared to testify about what happened inside the Tennessee clubhouse that day.

Fritts' defense lawyer says the 67-year-old Kingsmen knew nothing about the murders and is not implicated in any of the other violent acts outlined in the indictment.

"Mr. Fritts, who admits he was part of this organization, is being held accountable for the conduct of other people," said defense attorney Daniel M. Griebel.

Fritts was ordered released but restricted to home detention with an ankle bracelet.

With roots dating back to the 1950s, the Kingsmen grew over the years and, until recently, operated a dozen clubhouses throughout the region, including rural areas such as Attica, Arcade and Gowanda. They also have a presence in Florida, Tennessee and Pennsylvania.

Prosecutors say the clubhouses served as a venue for membership gatherings, also known as "church" meetings, but also doubled as a place to store drugs and weapons.


Thursday, November 30, 2017

FACT:

"Some people aren't your friends 
They're just scared to be your enemy"

Monday, November 20, 2017

Hells Angels MC members charged

San Francisco, California (November 20, 2017) —Biker Trash Network— Federal prosecutors in San Francisco have charged nine members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club with running a criminal organization responsible for multiple robberies and assaults and one murder.

The U.S. Attorney's office and FBI announced the charges on Monday. Most of the defendants are members of the group's Sonoma County chapter in Northern California.


The most serious crime, however, took place when Jonathan “Jon Jon” Nelson, the president of the Sonoma County chapter of the Hells Angels, told an unnamed victim to meet with Brian Wendt, the president of the Fresno County chapter of the Hells Angels—with Wendt then murdering the victim, the indictment states.
Other crimes laid against the gang members include drug trafficking, assault, robbery, illegal guns and witness intimidation.


“This week we have taken a significant step toward bringing to justice an alleged conspiracy whose aim has been to commit violent crimes,” U.S. Attorney Brian Stretch, of the Northern District of California, said in a statement Monday confirmed by BTN.

Another Hells Angels member sexually assaulted someone identified only as “Victim 6” last year, threatening during the attack to hurt Victim 6’s family if they reported the assault.

The head of the FBI's San Francisco division, Jack Bennett, said their crimes were intended to instill fear in parts of the city of Santa Rosa.

The indictment also includes multiple charges of intimidating witnesses.

SOURCE:  Newsweek

Sunday, November 19, 2017

Outlaws MC member charged with murder of female bartender

JOLIET, IL (November 18, 2017) —  Jeremy Boshears, of Coal City, was charged with killing Kaitlyn Kearns by Will County authorities on Saturday. According to a release from Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow's office, the 32-year-old Boshears was charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

The Outlaws MC
The three counts allege that Boshears shot Kearns, of Mokena, in the head with a firearm on Nov. 13.

Will County Circuit Judge Carla Alessio Policandriotes reviewed the murder case and signed an arrest warrant that included a $10 million bond. A court date has yet to be scheduled. Boshears was booked into the Jerome Combs Detention Center in Kankakee on Friday after he was charged with concealment of a homicide by Kankakee County State's Attorney Jim Rowe. Kankakee County Judge Kathy Bradshaw-Elliott set Boshears' bond on that charge at $250,000.

Related | Outlaws clubhouse searched over murder investigation 



It is alleged Boshears drove Kearns' 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee with her body inside to a residence in Aroma Township and parked it in a pole barn.

On Thursday, investigators using electronic means were able to locate the vehicle. They found her in the back of the vehicle. She was pronounced dead of a single gunshot wound to the head. Investigators do not believe the property owner was involved or had knowledge of the murder.

Rowe has agreed it is appropriate to prosecute all charges in Will County. He has agreed to dismiss his charge so that a similar charge can be filed in Will County as part of the overall prosecution of this case, according to the release.

According to the Will County sheriff's release, investigators believe Kearns had met Boshears four weeks ago while she worked as a bartender at Woody's bar, located in the 1000 block of East Washington Street in Joliet. Kearns dated Boshears for the past two weeks.

Kearns told people she was going to the Outlaws Motorcycle Clubhouse after she got off her shift at 1:30 a.m. on Monday. The clubhouse is down the street from Woody's. Kearns was reported missing at about 2:45 p.m. Tuesday by her father.

On Wednesday, Joliet detectives turned the search over to the Will County Sheriff's Department. Will County investigators searched the Outlaws' building Thursday. A media report said investigators towed Boshears' Dodge Charger from an alley next to the clubhouse.

In obtaining the warrant, a prosecutor said in Kankakee County court that Boshears is a known member of the Outlaws.

On Friday, Will County Sheriff's Public Information Officer Kathy Hoffmeyer said they had a person of interest (Boshears) in custody in the investigation of the murder. "The person in custody has retained an attorney, and we are unable to speak with him any further," she said.

SOURCE: The Joliet Patch

Feds lead police raid at bar during Hells Angels end of summer run

Santa Rosa, California (November 18, 2017) —Biker Trash Network— Law enforcement officers led by the FBI surrounded a Santa Rosa bar where motorcyclists affiliated with the Hells Angels motorcycle club had gathered on Saturday afternoon, part of an extensive, daytime police action that also focused on a home in southwest Santa Rosa and resulted in arrests, authorities said.

Full patched members along with probates cornered 

An FBI spokesman said the operation was conducted under a sealed federal warrant, but neither he nor local law enforcement officials would say who the operation was targeting or how many locations were involved.

However, witnesses at the Wagon Wheel Saloon around noon said they saw motorcycles being seized and riders detained outside the bar on Mendocino Avenue.

A tactical team from the FBI was on site, as were a number of CHP officers and the armored SWAT vehicle shared by the Santa Rosa Police Department and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office. Some of the heavily armed officers wore full tactical gear, including Kevlar helmets and bulletproof vests, and wielded assault rifles. No shots were fired or physical altercations reported.

California Highway Patrol

Santa Rosa Police Chief Hank Schreeder said there was a “significant” number of Santa Rosa officers and detectives who assisted the FBI in the operation, which later also involved an armed search of an Antelope Lane home, 6 miles to the south in the city’s Bellevue Avenue neighborhood.

Prentice Danner, the FBI spokesman, confirmed that arrests were made but declined to say how many. The federal warrant will be unsealed Monday, he said, when the agency plans to share more information at a San Francisco press conference.

The Wagon Wheel Saloon was the scheduled departure point Saturday for a Hells Angels Motorcycle Club ride billed as the “Red White Sonoma County End of Summer Run,” according to the website of the group’s Sonoma County chapter. The previously planned ride had been rescheduled due to last month’s fires.

One rider said he traveled Saturday from Fort Bragg with a group of about 10 fellow motorcyclists for the scheduled ride. As riders were outside the bar “starting up their bikes” and getting ready to head out, he said, a swarm of law enforcement appeared.

“They just surrounded the place and wouldn’t let anybody go anywhere,” said the rider, Dan, who would only give his first name. Officers eventually allowed some riders, including him, to leave. Though he was separated from the rest of his group, he said.


Multiple riders in front of the bar Saturday were seen wearing vests with Hells Angels’ patches on them. Authorities would not elaborate on what ties, if any, the club or motorcycle riders in general had with the police action.

A Wagon Wheel bartender who refused to provide his name indicated that the establishment appeared not to be the target but a staging ground for the police raid.

The FBI along with the State Highway Patrol and of course the local PD were involved

“All it did was ruin a perfectly good afternoon,” he said. “It was a cheap party, (the police) didn’t even bring a helicopter.”

About 12:30 p.m., Santa Rosa police issued a public notice advising people to avoid the Mendocino Avenue block where the Wagon Wheel is located, between Administration Drive and Bicentennial Way.

Inspecting VIN's   

The block was reopened by 2 p.m. and law enforcement left. A handful of bikers in leather Hells Angels vests lingered outside of the bar but refused to comment. Others drove off on their Harley-Davidson's toward Highway 101. Groups of motorcycles, including Hells Angels riders, were later reported as they were seen by officers traveling in the area and across Sonoma County, according to radio dispatch traffic.

After 2 p.m., FBI officials were seen surrounding the home off Antelope Lane, where they reportedly used concussion grenades in a search that the FBI spokesman confirmed was related to the raid at the saloon.
Roughly a dozen FBI agents were staged outside the home about 3 p.m.

Law enforcement had the road shut down during the raid

They wore camouflage uniforms and bulletproof vests and carried assault rifles. A Santa Rosa Police detective assisting at the scene described the search as connected with an FBI case. FBI agents on the scene refused to comment.

As the search was underway, a man who said he lived at the residence sat outside on a fire hydrant. The man, who refused to share his name, had not been detained.

An owner of the Wagon Wheel could not be reached late Saturday. A representative of the Sonoma County Hells Angels did not return a phone call seeking comment.

Law enforcement searching a vehicle during the raid at a home

At the Wagon Wheel on Saturday afternoon, a man who declined to provide his name for fear of his safety, said he pulled over near the bar about 1 p.m. and saw in the area at least two dozen law enforcement officials, including CHP and FBI representatives as well as police dogs. He said he saw authorities confiscate Harley-Davidson motorcycles and load them into a truck.

“You could see them bringing out motorcycle after motorcycle,” the man said. “This was all a big, preplanned thing.”

SOURCE:  The Press Democrat