Hells Angels MC poker run stopped by police

Kelowna, British Columbia (September 22, 2018) BTN— Dozens of Hells Angels and associated motorcycle club members were pulled over by police on Kelowna's Glenmore Road Saturday, not long after the riders took off from the Kelowna Hells Angels clubhouse on their annual Poker Run ride.

Upwards of 100 riders were seen pulled over on Glenmore Road, just north of Summit Drive at about noon. Earlier Saturday, the bikers had left from the Hells Angel's clubhouse in Kelowna's North End, on Ellis Street.

The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, B.C.'s anti-gang police agency, is in Kelowna this weekend to support the Kelowna RCMP during the Hells Angel event.

The Kelowna RCMP have yet to comment on the ride, or about their interaction with the riders on Glenmore Road. It's unclear if any arrests were made.

The poker run involves riding to different locations and collecting playing cards. The cards are then used to make a poker hand at the end of the ride.

The Hells Angels set up a chapter in Kelowna around 2006. The gang's clubhouse, while still in use by its members, is the subject of an ongoing BC Civil Forfeiture Office trial in BC Supreme Court in Vancouver.

After several police raids on the property over the past several years, the property's assets were frozen in 2016, pending the outcome of the trial. The BC Civil Forfeiture Office is looking to seize the gang's clubhouses in Nanaimo and Vancouver, in addition to Kelowna, arguing the properties will be used to commit crimes in the future.

The trial, 10 years in the making, is scheduled into December.

UPDATE:

The police traffic stop of the Hells Angel poker run in Kelowna stemmed from some confusion over the correct route by riders, according to police.

Sgt. Brenda Winpenny of the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit BC says the confusion over the correct route resulted in the bikers blocking traffic on Glenmore Road.

"An RCMP traffic unit initiated a traffic stop with the lead bikers to address the situation," Sgt. Winpenny said. "CFSEU-BC was present and assisted the traffic unit with the stop."

The CFSEU-BC, B.C.'s anti-gang police agency, are in Kelowna this weekend for the Hells Angel poker run.

"The main objective at these events is to ensure police and public safety and that the participants of the ride abide by the law," Sgt. Winpenny said.

The Kelowna RCMP has not yet commented on the ride or the traffic stop.

SOURCE: Casanet

Mongols MC leader dodges prison

Medford, Oregon (September 22, 2018) BTN— A man believed to have headed the local chapter of a motorcycle club has been sentenced to probation for his role in a firearms deal with undercover federal agents.

Steven Jay Silva, 53, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Medford Wednesday morning to five years of probation for his role in buying illicit firearms from undercover Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents last summer. The guns included a sawed-off shotgun and a silencer Silva believed to be unmarked and unregistered.

Silva, who police believe was president of the Southern Oregon chapter of the Mongols MC during the summer of 2017, bought six guns, including the sawed-off shotgun, Aug. 14 of last year.

In September 2017, Silva reportedly coordinated a drug and gun buy with undercover agents, which reportedly included 400 OxyContin pills, 90 Vicodin pills, three revolvers and a silencer for which Silva paid $2,050.

A search warrant executed at his home in the 1000 block of Edwina Avenue yielded multiple photos and memorabilia related to his motorcycle gang membership, including his “cut” or vest.

ATF agents say Silva’s patches show him to be “one of the founding Mongols of the Southern Oregon chapter,” before delineating other patches related to the roughly 600-member gang headquartered in central California, which has rivalries with the Hells Angels, the Outlaws and the Sons of Silence, according to ATF agents.

Silva’s “Respect Few, Fear None” patch is typically earned when someone engages in violence on behalf of the gang; and the wing patches on his vest “are earned when someone engages in various sex acts with a woman in front of other Mongol members.”

Silva professes to have resigned from the club since he was charged last year. In court filings, his public defender, Brian Butler, argued that Silva has completed drug treatment, maintained full-time employment and has complied with terms of his pretrial release.

SOURCE: Mail Tribune

Motorcycles continued

A parked Harley-Davidson panhead motorcycle

Saskatoon police to public: Increased presence of Hells Angels

Saskatoon, Canada (September 21, 2018) BTN— Members of the Hells Angels motorcycle club are converging on the city this weekend to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the club's Saskatoon chapter.

The red and white will be flying frequently in Saskatoon this weekend as members of the Hells Angels motorcycle club are converging on the city to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the club’s Saskatoon chapter.

City police say Hells Angels and their associates will be gathering in the city for the celebration and say members of the public can expect to see an increased presence from the motorcycle club from here in Saskatchewan and from right across Canada.

“The Saskatoon Police Service has an operational plan in place and additional policing resources will be on hand to ensure the safety of the public and all those involved,” says the Saskatoon Police Service news release.

This isn’t the first time a large number of Hells Angels from across Canada converged on Saskatoon. In 2012, members of the infamous club converged on the city for the National Run, which saw members from across the country arrive in the bridge city.

Saskatoon Police Services and the RCMP held a press conference to announce drug busts of Hells Angels members and associates on January 15, 2015 in Saskatoon. Members of the club from across Canada are expected to converge on Saskatoon this weekend to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Saskatoon Hells Angels chapter

SOURCE: The Star Phoenix

Motorcycle Clubs are breaking the "Outlaw" stereotype

San Angelo, Texas (September 19, 2018) BTN— Motorcycle Clubs are breaking the "Outlaw" stereotype that has been pinned to them.

The club manager at San Angelo's Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Janet Sheppard, says, "I've been asked many times why I let the motorcycle clubs hang out at the VFW. Most of the times the people in these motorcycle clubs are either active duty or veterans, and the VFW is there home."

Non-members of the American Motorcyclist Association, and incidents, such as the shootout involving motorcycle club affiliates in Waco, Texas, are some of the things that created the outlaw stereotype of motorcycle clubs.

The president of Iron Horse MC-McCulloch County, "Iron Horse Preacher", says, "To overcome something like Waco, we just have to work and show the community what happened. There was an isolated incident. Those Confederation of Clubs and independent meetings like that — we've been doing this for over twenty years, we've never had an incident at any of them, until that one."

To prove these incidents are individual issues rather than club-associated issues, they involve themselves in different fundraisers and give back to the community.

A member of the Silent Heroes MC, "Squirrel," explained "in July, we did a BBQ benefit at the VFW. Every year we go to Shannon and we go deliver toys to the kids."

Besides fundraising for events, they are also politically involved.

President and Founder of Ponderosas MC, Gypc Serna, says, "We are trying to get motorcycle profiling an amendment on the Texas state constitution."

Members say police pull them over due to their outfits. Profiling also comes from establishments around town.

"There are several in San Angelo, that you can't wear any of your colors in," says Preacher.

So people might ask, why the club? Why not just ride?

"It's the unity of the club, it's the structure of the club," says Preacher. "A lot of the guys that are in clubs are ex-military because they miss that structure that they had in the military."

The clubs call themselves a brotherhood and sisterhood. They enjoy the comradery the organization has to offer.

"If there was ever any trouble in here," says Sheppard. "I feel certain that I would be protected, first of anyone."

SOURCE: Concho Valley Homepage