Canadian military members banned from associating with outlaw bikers

Toronto, Ontario, CA (March 9, 2018) BTN — The Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces have issued a nationwide general order banning members of Canada’s military from associating with a variety of groups, including outlaw biker clubs.

The general order was issued in February, almost four years after a military police intelligence report warned that some active and retired troops have an uncomfortably close alliance with outlaw motorcycle clubs.

The February 2018 general order addresses several banned groups. Among other things, it warns members that they must avoid any association that a member of the military “knows, or ought to know, promote racism, sexism, misogyny, violence, xenophobia, homophobia, ableism and discriminatory views with respect to particular religions or faiths.”

Bikers hanging a banner outside the Hells Angels Nomads compound before their Canada Run on July 22, 2016 in Carlsbad Springs, Ont. 

It also bars members from “participation in an activity of, or membership in, a group or organization that a CAF (Canadian Armed Forces) member knows, or ought to know, is connected with criminal activities…”

A Canadian Forces spokesperson told the Star that this includes a ban on associating with outlaw biker gangs. In Canada, the Hells Angels and Outlaws are considered by police to be outlaw biker gangs.

The 2018 general order follows a July 2014 report obtained by the Star under the Access to Information Act which says that some 155 active and retired military personnel associate with outlaw bikers, “threatening security clearances and reliability, and impacting on CAF operations.”

In the heavily censored report obtained by the Star, 48 of 69 pages are totally blanked out for a variety of security reasons, including concerns that its release might reveal the identity of confidential sources or be related to investigations. The 2014 military intelligence investigation, called “Operation Nighthawk,” notes that some 80 active Canadian Armed Forces members and some 75 retirees belonged to veteran-based motorcycle clubs, called “V-B MC.”

“Many of these V-B MCs are associating with .. Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMG), which are considered criminal organizations,” the report continues. “According to the Personnel Security Screening Office (PSSO), ‘CF members are of interest to OMGs (outlaw motorcycle gangs) in view of their access to weapons, ammunition and explosives, as well as their military training,’” the report says.

The report also notes there is a long and complicated history between outlaw bikers and the military, and that several outlaw biker clubs have military origins that date back to World War II.

“When servicemen returned from the war (WWII) they likely found the transition back to civilian life monotonous or more than they could handle,” the report states. “Feeling disenfranchised and cast out of normal society, they searched for relief and the company of kindred spirits, and perhaps to relive some of the wilder aspects of what they had experienced overseas.”

A Hells Angels MC calendar from 2005

 The report notes that original members of the Hells Angels included American members of a World War II fighter squadron who painted “Hell’s Angels” on the side of aircraft. (The motorcycle club has since decided to spell its name without an apostrophe).

In Toronto, local Hells Angels referenced their military roots in 2004 when they briefly put up a billboard by the Don Valley Parkway, which included a picture of troops by a military aircraft with “HELLS ANGELS” painted on its side. The caption of the billboard stated “Still fighting for democracy & freedom.)

Since World War II, there have been waves of veterans who have formed motorcycle clubs. Returning servicemen from the Vietnam War formed the Bandidos, Mongols, Sons of Silence, Vagos and Warlocks motorcycle clubs, the report notes.

Operation Nighthawk was launched in 2012 after investigators with the Military Police Criminal Intelligence Program noted that “many veteran-based motorcycle clubs emulated the structure and operation of outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMG),” the report says.

“More worrisome were observations that DND/CAF members of these MCs were rumoured to be associating directly and indirectly with members and associates of known OMGs,” the report says.

The report continues that many members of veterans’ motorcycle clubs joined them “blindly,” with the intention of not associating with members of outlaw motorcycle clubs.

The report describes membership in veterans’ motorcycle clubs as “a gateway … to the OMG-lifestyle (outlaw motorcycle gang) and the criminal environment.”

The report expresses uneasiness between members of military-based motorcycle clubs and outlaw bikers, stating “it is of concern that any association to these types of groups provide a possible gateway not only to the OMG lifestyle but the criminal environment as well.”

“There exists the potential for members to be coerced into providing access to CAF/DND (Canadian Armed Forced/ Department of National Defence) assets/ expertise and information which can be used to further the criminal enterprise of the OMG,” the report says.

“Currently there is no policy regarding a CAF member becoming a member or associating with members and/or associates of OMGs,” the report says.

“There is no policy or consistent order regulating or banning the wearing of colours or other club identifiers while on DND property,” the report continues. “There also is no policy regarding the invitation of OMG members onto DND establishments.”

SOURCE: The Star

Man says Outlaws MC members beat him in Bay City bar

Bay City, MI (March 7, 2018) BTN — In a quiet courtroom, a prosecutor played video footage of a bar patron being punched by another customer, then stomped by two men. According to witnesses, the beatdown was perpetrated by two bikers who were vexed over a photo the assaulted man had reportedly taken.

And to hear the victim tell it, he hadn't even taken a photo in the first place.

Such was the testimony during the March 6 preliminary examination of Eric J. Kerkau, 46, and Arthur R. Miller, 33, both charged with a 10-year felony count of assault with intent to cause great bodily harm.

Eric Kerkau (L) and Arthur Miller (R) 

Ashley Schwartz, the first witness called by Bay County Assistant Prosecutor Thomas, testified she had been bartending at the Whyte Goose Inn, 108 State St., the early morning of Dec. 27. About 1 a.m., an argument broke out between Scott M. Peterson, 49, and Kerkau and Miller regarding a photo Peterson had supposedly taken, Schwartz said.

"One gentlemen stood up, took his coat off, and tried to initiate a fight," Schwartz said, identifying this man as Miller. "I tried to stop it. The gentlemen that tried to initiate a fight tried to get Scott to come outside and fight him, but he would not go. The other gentleman (Kerkau) who was still in the bar ... took a few steps back and just sucker-punched (Peterson). It just proceeded from there."

Schwartz said Miller came back inside and joined Kerkau in punching and kicking Peterson.

"There was so much chaos at the time, it was hard to tell how many times he was hit," she said. As the assault occurred, Schwartz called 911.

Cross-examined by defense attorneys Matthew Boucher and Brian Jean, Schwartz said Peterson had been sitting at the bar with his girlfriend, playing with his phone. She didn't notice if he had taken a photo of Kerkau or Miller or not, she said.

During the dispute with Peterson, Miller had made comments about being "black and white" and that "nobody needs to have any black and white on their phones," Schwartz said.

Jean asked Schwartz why she told Bay County Central Dispatch that Peterson was being assaulted by members of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. She replied that she wanted responding police to be aware of who the assailants were in case they had weapons on them.

"It's just from working in bars and experiences with other fights with different biker groups, it's common for some of them to have weapons," Schwartz said.

Called to the stand after Schwartz, Peterson said he and his girlfriend had gone to the Whyte Goose after having dinner on Midland Street and a drink at Stables Martini & Cigar Bar, 804 E. Midland St. They arrived at the Whyte Goose between 11:30 p.m. and midnight, he said. He said he did not know Kerkau or Miller.

Miller and Kerkau were already at the Whyte Goose when Peterson arrived, he said. He wasn't there long before Miller and Kerkau confronted him, he said.

"They were accusing me of having pictures of them on my phone," he said. "Miller was trying to get me to come outside with him. I didn't know what the heck they were talking about. I refused to go outside with him."

Peterson denied having any photos of Miller or Kerkau on his phone.

Peterson and his girlfriend sat at the bar, with Kerkau sitting nearby. A short while later, Kerkau again accused Peterson of having photos of him on his phone, he said.

"Before I knew it, I got blasted in the back of the head by Eric," Peterson said. "He hit me once that I know of. I turned around towards him and then I got clocked in the side of the head by Arthur. Then we got all tangled up and I went down to the ground and they were hitting me and kicking me. I was just trying to cover up at that point."

Peterson sustained injuries to his shoulder, knee and ribs. He suffered a slightly detached retina in his right eye, which has required two laser surgeries. He also required six staples to mend a wound in the back of his scalp, he said.

Under cross-examination, Peterson said he had two IPA beers with dinner, one at Stables, and half of one at the Whyte Goose. He said he was not feeling intoxicated.

Asked by Jean if he had seen Kerkau and Miller at Stables, Peterson said he hadn't noticed them there. He added he had left Stables due to police arriving there to deal with some issue, and that he's not a fan of police.

Jean then asked him about his prior convictions on larceny-related charges and if he considers himself an honest man. Peterson replied that he does consider himself honest.

Since the Whyte Goose incident, Peterson in January was charged with a misdemeanor count of domestic violence.

Jean asked him to describe the injuries he sustained.

"Senseless and severe," Peterson replied. "It's ridiculous what happened, I'll tell you that."

Bay City Public Safety Officer Todd Armstrong testified that when he arrived at the bar, Peterson was lying on the floor. In the course of his investigation, Armstrong obtained the bar's surveillance camera footage of the incident, which Assistant Prosecutor Hausmann played in the hearing.

The silent footage shows Peterson standing at the bar, only to punched by another man. The first assailant is then joined by another man and the pair proceed to beat Peterson as other patrons try breaking up the assault.

After the video ended, Hausmann asked Armstrong what it means to him when a man describes himself as "black and white." The officer replied that based on his training and experience, he would assume that man would be associated with the Outlaws.

Armstrong added he recovered a necklace at scene bearing a Black Pistons medallion. The Black Pistons is a support club of the Outlaws. Armstrong added that Kerkau's Facebook page featured references to his "black and white brothers."

Questioned by the defense, Armstrong said he was unaware if police searched Peterson's phone to see if he had or had not taken photos of Miller or Kerkau.

After Armstrong testified, Hausmann asked Bay County District Judge Timothy J. Kelly to allow him to add a 20-year charge of gang membership to each defendant's case. Boucher and Jean objected to this and Kelly ended up siding with them.

Kelly did, however, bind both men's cases over to Circuit Court for trial. Kerkau and Miller are free on bond.

The Outlaws Motorcycle Club was established in 1935 in McCook, Illinois. Since then, it has expanded to 28 countries. It has four Michigan chapters, including one in Bay City. In 2006, five members of the Bay City chapter were involved in a shootout with the Hell's Angels in South Dakota.

Through its website, the club is adamant that it is not a criminal organization.

"We may not live by the rules of society, but we do live by its laws," the site states.

SOURCE: MLive

Mongols MC hit with another round of federal charges, including murder

Clarksville, TN (March 8, 2018) BTN— Federal prosecutors on Thursday announced another wave of charges against members of a Clarksville motorcycle club, including new allegations of murder, kidnapping and drug trafficking.

The charges are part of a continuing investigation into the impact of organized crime and drug dealing in Montgomery County and Middle Tennessee. Nineteen members and associates of the local Mongols Motorcycle Club chapter were charged.

Fifteen of those suspects were already named in a January indictment that included allegations of shooting a woman dead in a graveyard, setting a business on fire and bringing more than 50 pounds of methamphetamine into Middle Tennessee.

The new indictment adds four suspects, and accuses those men of kidnapping and killing Stephen Cole, a fellow club member who was considered missing for months. Biker Trash Network

The newly added suspects were:

William Nelper, aka “Flip,” 49, of Trenton, Kentucky;

William Boylston, aka “JC,” 27;

Jason Meyerholz, aka “Country,” 43; and

Christopher Wilson, 35, all of Clarksville, Tennessee.

Cole was one of the suspects in the January indictment, but authorities could not find him during their initial arrest sweep. According to a summary of the new indictment released by the U.S. Attorney's office in Nashville, those men conspired to kidnap and kill Cole on Nov. 19.

Boylston, Meyerholz and Wilson kidnapped Cole at gunpoint and then stripped him of his shoes, wallet, and cell phones, according to the indictment.

Then, prosecutors say, Boylston and Meyerholz took Cole to Nelper’s home in Trenton, Kentucky, where they killed him, dumped his body and burned the evidence.

All of the new defendants were charged with the kidnapping that led to Cole's death. Boylston, Meyerholz and Nelper were charged with his murder.

The second indictment also includes charges of racketeering, money laundering and drug dealing.

If convicted, the four new suspects face a minimum of life in prison with the possibly of the death penalty.

All but two of the remaining 15 suspects face life in prison if convicted of the charges they face.

The Mongols identify as an “outlaw” motorcycle gang based in California, according to authorities. The Clarksville chapter was founded in 2015, according to the indictment.

Federal investigators teamed with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Clarksville police, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies to investigate the club's activities after a woman was found shot to death in a graveyard in May 2015.

Prosecutors have tied the woman's death with at least two of the 19 suspects in the case.

U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of Nashville plans to pursue similar investigations in the future, driven by the focus on violent crime at the U.S. Department of Justice.

Cochran's office got federal approval this year to hire two new prosecutors focused specifically on violent crime.

SOURCE: TENNESSEAN

Police Pounced - Hells Angels lose their arsenal in clubhouse raids

Limburg, Belgium (March 7, 2018) BTN — Police raided the club houses of the Hells Angels motorbike club in Lanaken and Genk in Limburg on Tuesday night seizing an impressive collection of weapons. The searches formed part of a massive police operation and an investigation by federal prosecutors across Belgium and the Netherlands.

Hells Angels members outside clubhouse

In all sixteen other premises across the country were raided. 12 people were detained in total. Police encountered an impressive arsenal of guns and ammunition. In all fifty weapons were seized including a rocket launcher, eight firearms and 800 rounds of ammunition. Bullet proof vests with Belgian police logos were also impounded. BikerTrashNetwork.

Items seized during police raids on clubhouses 

A series of violent incidents involving members and non-members and extortion, drugs and arms trafficking and organised crime triggered the investigation. The investigation is also linked to a drugs enquiry that started last December and involved nine house searches in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.

SOURCE: Flanders News

Hells Angels Interview On Geraldo Rivera

A 1974 television interview with the Hells Angels from Good Night America, hosted by Geraldo Rivera, featuring Edward "Deacon" Proudfoot (president of the Oakland charter), Sandy Alexander (president of the New York City charter), and Vincent "Big Vinnie" Girolamo.