Hells Angels brand Hamilton bar

The Hells Angels are back in their old Hamilton neighbourhood, and they're not being shy about it.
A former tavern on Gage Avenue and Beach Road now carries a sign with the unmistakable logo.
And as Lisa Hepfner tells us, the Angels say the location is a headquarters for their internet business, and a place for friends to hang out and talk about their bikes.

 

Bikie colours ban in Kings Cross

New South Government has intervened to ban bikie gang colours in Sydney's nightclub hub at Kings Cross.
Police made a submission last September to have bikie uniforms banned at all pubs and clubs in the inner city suburb.
But the state's Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing rejected the push, saying it was not warranted under the Liquor Act.
Instead it ruled that it should be left up to the owners of licensed venues to introduce the ban voluntarily.
The NSW Police Association described that decision as "staggering in its stupidity".
Now Premier Barry O'Farrell has stepped in and says he will overrule the office using the same legislation.
Mr O'Farrell says the ban will cover all clothing and accessories linked to bikies and gangs and will be introduced swiftly.

 

Police blast bikie base as ban looms

Baillieu government will move to introduce laws later this year that ban outlaw motorcycle groups in Victoria after a series of raids at properties linked to the Hells Angels in Melbourne's north yesterday.

But more than six months after the election and more than a year after the proposed laws were unveiled, the government will not set a date for when the legislation will be implemented and enforced.

The government confirmed it was still committed to the pre-election pledge just hours after four police raids netted drugs, a shotgun and ammunition.

 Police used explosives to gain access to Hells Angels headquarters in Thomastown yesterday morning. Photo: Jason South
In March last year the Coalition said Victoria had become a haven for motorcycle gangs because Labor had failed to follow the example of other states and propose tougher laws.

Then opposition leader Ted Baillieu accused the gangs of drug dealing, extortion and arson and said the Coalition's proposed laws would include new seizure provisions and the ability to demolish fortress-like compounds in the suburbs.

The laws would bring Victoria closer in line to South Australia, where the state government introduced laws making it harder for members of gangs to associate.

But late last year the High Court overturned a significant part of the law after it found the legislation undermined the independence of magistrates.

Former attorney-general Rob Hulls said Victoria's proposed laws were modelled on South Australia's and would be similarly rejected by the High Court, raising questions about the Coalition's commitment to tackling organised crime.

In statement yesterday, Robert Clark confirmed the laws would be introduced this year but would not say when they would be enforceable or how the government would overcome a High Court ruling.

''Years of inaction by the former government placed Victoria at risk of becoming the criminal bike gang capital of the country,'' Mr Clark said.

''The government was elected to take action against criminal bikie and similar gangs operating in Victoria and we're now getting on with the job of delivering on our commitment."

But Law Institute of Victoria spokesman James Dowsley said the laws undermined civil liberties. ''Making criminals out of a whole class of people is ill-conceived,'' he said.

''If these laws are introduced then any contact with a banned group through email or the like could leave otherwise … innocent people liable to a prison sentence. [Existing laws] are adequate.''

Detective Superintendent Doug Fryer said all four properties in yesterday morning's raids in Greensborough, Thomastown and Bundoora were linked to the Nomads chapter of the Hells Angels.

The raids, which were conducted with the Australian Federal Police, included the group's Thomastown headquarters.

A 42-year-old Greensborough man was charged with possessing and trafficking a drug of dependence and possessing the proceeds of crime.

A 26-year-old Thomastown woman was interviewed by police regarding drug-related matters and released pending further inquiries.

Police would not confirm if raids were linked to escalating tensions between the Hells Angels and the Finks, which recently established a Melbourne base.

About 25 people from the two gangs were involved in a savage brawl in Adelaide less than two weeks ago that left four bikies in hospital.But Superintendent Fryer said the raids were linked to at least two serious assaults, firearms offences and drug trafficking allegations.

Several Hells Angels members attended the clubhouse yesterday, but it was empty when police stormed the building at 8.30am.

Hells Angels members would not comment on the assaults that are being investigated but said they were disappointed police had blasted open the gates of their headquarters to gain entry.

''If they rang us up obviously we would have opened them up for them. We've got nothing to hide. But that's what happens,'' one member told The Age.

Superintendent Fryer said the fortification of the clubhouse had not been an issue for police because explosives gave them easy access to the building.

 

Man dies in high-speed crash Victim had close ties to White Rock Hells Angels

man closely associated with the White Rock Hells Angels was killed instantly when his Dodge Viper flew off the Trans-Canada Highway in Langley Saturday night, rolled over and pinned him.

RCMP have identified the driver as Jeremy Pinette, 32, of Abbotsford.

Sgt. Peter Thiessen said a Langley Mountie saw the Viper westbound on 56th Avenue "approaching 264th at a very high rate of speed" shortly before the accident around 10 p.m.

"The officer turned around and activated the emergency equipment. However, by this time the Viper was no longer in sight and had now entered Highway 1 westbound at 264th Street. The officer immediately de-activated the emergency equipment," Thiessen said, adding the officer did not pursue the vehicle.

The same officer came upon the accident scene near 248th Street "and observed the same Dodge Viper upside down in the ditch with the lone occupant pinned inside," Thiessen said.

He said witnesses at the scene estimated that Pinette's Viper was travelling about 160 kilometres per hour before it hit the ditch.

Pinette grew up in Langley across the street from the White Rock chapter clubhouse, but was living in Abbotsford at the time of his death.

His home had fortified gates and security cameras, police confirmed.

Records from Abbotsford city hall show that Pinette had recently received a permit to build a machine shed worth more than $118,000 on the property.

Three years ago, when hundreds gathered at the Hells Angels' Langley compound to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the biker gang in B.C., Pinette was one of the designated drivers taking guests to and from their accommodations to the bash.

A Vancouver Sun reporter chatted with him when he left the compound and crossed the street during the event to visit his parents, who live and run a business on 61st, just east of 216th Street.

Throughout the July 2008 event, Pinette's father Roger, who owns Ponds Beautiful, criticized police for blockading 61st between 216th and 224th in order to screen those attending the party.

He said he lost a lot of business as a result of police turning away customers.

Asked at the time about his son's link to the Angels, he said: "He knows them. We all know them. We've been here 30 years, with the clubhouse here for 20 of them.

"My son grew up across the street from them and cut the Hells Angels' grass when he was a kid."

Pinette's sister Monica is an elite athlete who twice competed for Canada at the Olympics in the modern pentathlon.

Angels they are not

Barrister Bottomley was making closing arguments to a jury in a case that saw the president and four members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club on trial for belonging to a criminal organization.

 None of these defendants were what you would call “choir boys.” All of them were well-known to law enforcement and all of them had previously been convicted of or even pleaded guilty to crimes including weapons possession and drug dealing.

But Bottomley told the jurors, at the end of a six month trial, that didn’t make the Downtown Toronto chapter of the Hells Angels a criminal organization.

“There’s a very significant difference between a criminal organization and an organization that has some criminals in it,” Bottomley told the jurors.

Apparently, the jury agreed with that suggestion. While finding the bikers guilty on multiple other criminal counts, they acquitted them of on the belonging to a criminal organization charge.

I know a place

where we can go ...

OK, I know a lot of the Falls finest hookers won’t be attending a Mensa meeting anytime soon.

Still, their ability to continually be arrested for the same crime, by the same undercover officers remains amazing to me. Every time Roving Anti-Crime Unit officers respond to community complaints about streetwalker traffic there are inevitably good stories that follow.

Cases in point, a recent RAC sweep in the North End that took two “ladies of the evening” off the streets.

RAC Officer Rick Fleck, who’s been on the streets awhile, spotted Evelyn Stewart at 13th Street and Pierce Avenue in the middle of the afternoon and watch as she loitered in the area and tried to flag down cars. When Fleck pulled to her, in plainclothes and an unmarked vehicle, she jumped into the car.

“She said, ‘Do you want to party?’ and I said, ‘Sure’,” Fleck said. “She said we could go to her place and I told her, ‘I got a nice little place on Main Street.’”

Of course, Falls Police headquarters is located at 1925 Main St., but that thought apparently didn’t faze Stewart.

As they drove toward police headquarters, Stewart offered Fleck oral sex for $25 or regular sex, without a condom, for $50. Fleck proceed to pull up to the read parking lot of the police station and activated the gate to allow him to enter the secure facility.

It wasn’t until the RAC officer reached for his handcuffs, that Stewart, who is no stranger to arrest or police headquarters, finally reacted.

“Oh, you do like to get freaky,” she exclaimed.

“No,” Fleck replied, “You’re under arrest.”

Adelaide police have arrested 12 men connected with two bikie gangs after a violent brawl at a city nightclub

Adelaide police have arrested 12 men connected with two bikie gangs after a violent brawl at a city nightclub was captured by security cameras.

Police said 13 members of the Hells Angels and 12 members of the Finks clashed violently about 5am on May 29 at the Hindley Street venue.

They attacked each other with bottles, glasses, metal bollards and heavy metal bar stools, with several members of the group suffering serious head injuries.

Detective Inspector Steve Taylor, from the Crime Gangs Task Force, said the incident showed the true nature of the relationship between bikie gangs.

While they had recently portrayed themselves as law-abiding citizens who were united in the fight against SA's anti-gang laws, the opposite was actually the truth, he said.

'These pictures show members of motorcycle gangs are not ordinary citizens who ride motorcycles on weekends as a fun get together,' Det Insp Taylor said.

'They are not unified, they are violent offenders who have no problem playing out their differences in public.

'This violence has included shootings, bombings and stabbings.'

Det Insp Taylor said it was lucky no one was killed in the latest incident.

No arrests were made on the night, with police launching a major investigation involving about 170 officers.

They raided clubrooms operated by both the Finks and the Hells Angels on Friday.

Those arrested included seven members of the Finks, including the club's sergeant-at-arms, one member of the Hells Angels and four people associated with the Hells Angels.

They were all charged with aggravated riot, a recently introduced offence which carries a 10-year maximum jail term.

The 12 were granted police bail on strict conditions and will appear in court at a later date.

self-professed career criminal and founding member of the area Warlocks motorcycle gang is being held without bail pending his possible extradition to New Hampshire

A self-professed career criminal and founding member of the area Warlocks motorcycle gang is being held without bail pending his possible extradition to New Hampshire, where he allegedly gave a false address on official documentation, a felony in that state.

James Domaingue, 64, of Orchard Street, Pittsfield, was arrested by the Pittsfield Police on Wednesday morning acting on a warrant issued by a New Hampshire court. The Cheshire County (N.H.) Sheriff's Office in Keene, N.H., requested Domaingue be picked up by local police.

Domaingue, a former West Stockbridge used car salesman, was indicted by a Cheshire County grand jury March 16, 2009. The indictment alleges that on Oct. 16, 2007, he used a "false address for a certificate of title" on a vehicle.

"The [title] process is a lot less complicated in New Hampshire than it is Massachusetts," said Cheshire County Sheriff Capt. Trevor Croteau.

Assistant Cheshire County Attorney Kathleen O'Reilly, who handled the case, did not return phone calls by press time.

The crime is a felony punishable by up to seven years in prison.

Domaingue was arraigned in Central Berkshire District Court on Wednesday and held without bail at the Berkshire House of Correction. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 14.

Croteau said someone from his office would be coming to pick Domaingue up in the near future.

In a 2008 Eagle interview, Domaingue

called himself a "career criminal." He has spent at least 17 years in prison for various offenses, including the 1976 stabbing of a man in Mundy's Bar in Great Barrington.
He is also listed as a Level 2 sex offender in Massachusetts for a 1983 conviction for incestuous marriage or intercourse.

White Rock Hells Angels Implicated in U.S. Drug Ring

While no charges have yet been laid in Washington state against members or associates of the White Rock Hells Angels, U.S. court documents portray them as major suppliers of marijuana to American gangsters.

I went through hundreds of pages of those court documents, which point the finger at White Rock associate Trevor Jones, twin brother of Randy Jones - whose a full-patch member of the Langley-based chapter.

Three Canadians have been charged so far, along with 19 Americans. And it looks like others will be prosecuted as well. When you read through the court documents, who see just how many resources U.S. law enforcement commits to cases like this. Surveillance for months in multiple states. Many, many wiretaps. Agents setting up some of the suspects. And police intercepting marijuana and cocaine being transported in both planes and trucks.

One of the Canadians, Glen Stewart, 51, has lived in Blaine for years. Police allege h  e was going to be the recipient of a beating or worse by some White Rock associates that had travelled to the U.S. to look for missing cocaine. The coke had in fact been seized by authorities.

I did try to reach Trevor for this story, given that he has been implicated, but not charged. He did not respond to interview requests.

Police pull over biker gang members shutting down one lane of freeway

State and local police shut down one lane on I-84 one mile east of Gowen road exit Thursday night. Members of a notorious biker gang called Mongols were pulled over along the freeway. Our General Manager Chris Pruit caught it all on tape. Local Boise police say they assisted Idaho State Police. Idaho State Police told KMVT it was a traffic stop. Police can be seen with automatic weapons. The Mongols are headquartered in southern California with charters all over the U.S. and abroad. Hispanic Vietnam war veterans started the group in 1969 when hells angels refused to let them in because of their Hispanic heritage. Mongols members have been known for drug dealing, money laundering, robbery, extortion, murder just to name a few. One of their quotes is respect few, fear none.

 

The San Diego native known in his biker gang as Nasty Al had controlled the California gang's drug trafficking in the Sturgis and Rapid City areas for two years before getting caught.

South Dakota man who went from outlaw biker and drug dealer to ordained minister says a presidential pardon made him cry and bolstered his desire to help others.

The Rev. Al Peratt Sr. of Sioux Falls was sentenced in 1990 to 2 ½ years in prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine. The San Diego native known in his biker gang as Nasty Al had controlled the California gang's drug trafficking in the Sturgis and Rapid City areas for two years before getting caught.

"I was ready to die man. It was a bullet or a needle," he told KELO-TV, adding that he was addicted to drugs and alcohol. "I was doing so much bad things that I just figured nobody wanted me and God didn't want me. I was just ready to settle for that."

Peratt entered prison with a reputation that brought him respect from some of the most hardened criminals in the system. A church took in his homeless wife and daughter, helping bring him to the realization that he needed to turn his life around.

"That kind of started my thinking that there has to be some spiritual thing I have to do here to be in tune," he said.

Peratt has spent the past 20 years helping others fight addictions, and helping addicts and criminals transition back to society. He returns to the penitentiary once a month to minister.

"I have a good following in here," he said. "Even one guy knew me out on the street in Rapid City and we were ready to shoot it out a couple of times and now he sits in the front row, almost. He was one of my old crime partners. Now a Christian brother inside the walls."

Peratt was one of eight people pardoned by President Barack Obama last week.

"I just started crying man," he said.