motorcycle gang presence in Kern - Bakersfield.com

Police concerned about motorcycle gang presence in Kern - Bakersfield.com: "Mongols, Vagos and Hell's Angels. 'We are trained very well in gang enforcement. Criminal actions will not be tolerated and we will be very proactive.'
He and gang officer Eric Littlefield urged the public to keep a hands-off approach to any sightings of gang members, but to be 'good witnesses' if something does happen.
Their comments follow a May 30 stabbing death in Oildale that sheriff's reports indicate could be a rivalry between the Vagos and the Hell's Angels. Because of that incident and a warning from the sheriff's department, organizers of the annual Bakersfield Thunder Run canceled the June 12 event that was scheduled to begin at the Kern County Fairgrounds.
Aldana and Littlefield revealed for the first time Friday that last year's Thunder Run was marred by 'a tense standoff' between about 20 members each of Hell's Angels and Vagos.
Deputies were present during the standoff and Bakersfield police officers, who had just left the event, returned, Aldana said. The police presence quelled any criminal activity and no arrests were made, he said.
Also, no arrests have been made in the May 30 stabbing death of 18-year-old Roger Anthony Violano and the wounding of Nerl Rinehart in front of the Pirate Tattoo Shop in the 1900 block of North Chester Avenue."

Harold Reynolds, known as "Face," 40, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with racketeering influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO)

-- Harold Reynolds, known as "Face," 40, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with racketeering influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO) conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.
-- David Padilla, also known as "Lazy Dave," 36, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with RICO conspiracy, racketeering influenced and corrupt organizations, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
-- Ismael Padilla, also known as "Milo," 33, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with RICO conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.
-- William Ramirez, also known as "Moreno," 38, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with RICO conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.
-- Jason Hull, also known as "Big Jay," 33, of Las Vegas, charged in federal warrants with RICO conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.
-- John Babcock, also known as "Sinister," 43, of Las Vegas, charged in a state warrant with unlawful transfer of a firearm.
-- Gary Lawson, also known as "T.C.," 49, of Las Vegas was taken into custody in California as part of the operation.
"This has effectively dismantled both chapters in Southern Nevada," said Lt. David Logue, head of Metro's intelligence unit. Mongol chapters operated in Las Vegas and Henderson, he said.ro Police said at least nine motorcycles were confiscated, along with five revolvers, a chrome-plated pistol, three shotguns, numerous rifles and semi-automatic weapons. Some weapons and money were on display at a Tuesday news conference, said Bill Cassel, public information officer for Metro Police.
The federal racketeering indictment unsealed in Los Angeles also alleges the name "Mongols," which was trademarked by the gang, is subject to forfeiture.
The massive law enforcement crackdown against the Mongols, dubbed "Operation Black Rain," began three and a half years ago by various agencies, including local police, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said Lt. David Logue, Metro Police intelligence chief.
Four agents outside of Nevada went undercover and earned a patch, becoming Mongol members, Logue said.Former national Mongol president Ruben Cavazos was arrested at his home near South Hills Country Club in West Covina, authorities said.
Law enforcement officers served a total of 110 federal arrest warrants and 160 search warrants in Southern California, Nevada, Oregon, Colorado, Washington state and Ohio. Seven of those warrants were served in Las Vegas by members of Metro Police, Henderson and North Las Vegas SWAT teams. No one resisted arrest and there were no injuries, Logue said.Mongol members have been involved in previous criminal activity in Las Vegas.Nine men, two of them Mongol members, were named in a federal grand jury indictment unsealed in April 2004 in Las Vegas on 73 counts of murder in connection with a shootout at Harrah's Laughlin casino at a 2002 gathering known as the River Run that left three people dead. Others involved were from the rival Hell's Angels motorcycle gang, authorities said. The shootout killed Salvador Barrera, Robert Tumelty and Jeremy Bell.About a half dozen people formed the gang in the 1970s because they were banned from joining the notorious Hell's Angels motorcycle group due to their Hispanic heritage. The Mongol gang began attracting members with criminal tendencies as it grew and was then labeled "outlaw" by law enforcement officials.The Mongols tend to recruit younger, more violent people from street gangs, said Thomas L. Chittum III, resident agent in charge in the Las Vegas branch of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Steven Gonzales named in an indictment against dozens of members of the Mongols motorcycle gang has turned himself in.

Steven Gonzales of Denver named in an indictment against dozens of members of the Mongols motorcycle gang has turned himself in.
U.S. Attorney Troy Eid says 40-year-old Steven Gonzales of Denver surrendered at a bail bonds facility Thursday.Eid says that means all 14 people indicted in the Denver case against the Mongols are now in custody.Gonzales was among 79 people named in an indictment released this week against Mongols members. The indictment describes a tightly organized group that routinely engaged in crimes including murder, torture and drug trafficking.It is unknown whether Gonzales has an attorney.

Mongols are trying to increase their territory, and they are getting push-back" from Hells Angels

The Mongols, roughly 1,000 strong, are based in East Los Angeles, he said.
"The Mongols are trying to increase their territory, and they are getting push-back" from Hells Angels, Torres said. "Any time there's violence between two gangs like this, who are willing to do physical harm and damage, my concern is for innocent bystanders," Torres said. "I'm very concerned for our community and very concerned for law enforcement - I would hate to see an innocent child, an innocent person, caught in the cross fire."Authorities have described Ablett, the suspect in Guardado's killing, as a rank-and-file member of the Mongols. Police identified him as a suspect in part because of witness descriptions of the killer's motorcycle, which police say matched a bike owned by the Mongol member. Police seized Ablett's motorcycle in a search of the Modesto home where he lives with his parents, but they have been unable to find him.Guardado's funeral in Daly City on Monday drew thousands of bikers from around the United States and as far away as Europe. The proceedings were peaceful.Hells Angels members have declined to speak to reporters since Guardado was killed. An attorney who represented Guardado in a Sonoma County battery case, Pat Ciocca, declined to comment Thursday.Neighbors on Melannie Court were rattled by the blasts and the wave of law enforcement officers who came out to investigate. Police and federal agents sealed off the street and escorted school-bound children through the barricade. Several neighbors said they had no problems with the residents of the house where the bombs went off. Motorcycles occasionally came and went from the home, they said.One neighbor, who did not give his name, said he had been unable to sleep and had been painting his guest room when the bombs went off."It sounded like dynamite," he said. "Boom! Not like firecrackers. A lot louder than that. I used to feel secure on this street, but I guess I don't anymore."

Double stabbing in a brawl with the Hells Angels at a Newport Beach bar

Arrests, which followed a double stabbing in a brawl with the Hells Angels at a Newport Beach bar July 27, was the latest brush with the law for the group of black-leather-clad bikers, which has straddled the line between Christian outreach group and outlaw motorcycle gang.By late Wednesday, authorities had arrested 10 members of the Set Free Soldiers and the Hells Angels during raids in Anaheim, Costa Mesa and Rancho Santa Margarita that started at 5 a.m., said Sgt. Evan Sailor of the Newport Beach Police Department.The operation involved more than 150 officers, including SWAT teams and federal drug enforcement agents.Seven members of the Set Free Soldiers, including leader Phil Aguilar, 60, have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and are each being held on $1-million bail, police said.
Three members of the Hells Angels are also in custody, including John Phillip Lloyd, a 41-year-old Costa Mesa man charged with assault with a deadly weapon. The other two were arrested on drug charges.Others are still being sought on arrest warrants.
The arrests stemmed from a 15-person brawl at the Newport Beach bar Blackie's by the Sea, where Set Free members allegedly stabbed two Hells Angels members.
During the brawl, the Hells Angels also allegedly struck one of the Set Free members in the head with a pool ball.On its website, which appeared to have been taken down Wednesday evening, Set Free Soldiers call themselves "a group of men who love Jesus and love to ride hard.""We are not your normal motorcycle club," the statement reads. "Some say we are too good for the bad guys, and too bad for the good guys."
Aguilar, a Harley-riding ex-convict and former drug addict who served time for child abuse in the 1970s, converted to Christianity in prison. He became the founding pastor of Set Free Worldwide Ministries in 1982. But he and his ministry have been highly controversial.His MySpace.com page describes Aguilar as pastor or "the Chief" of the group. Next to his photo is the statement: "Sinner or Saint you be the judge!"
Police said that through its ministry, the gang recruited people discharged from parole, state prison and county jails and has an outreach program for convicted felons.Although Set Free has been praised for its streetwise approach, its detractors say it is an autocratic organization that exerts too much control over its members by confiscating their belongings and forcing them to break off relationships with friends and families.Law enforcement officials and former members say that the group has devolved into a motorcycle gang like any other, and that it has ties to the Mongols, an outlaw biker gang that has engaged in warfare with the Hells Angels.
Set Free chapters in the Midwest have provided security at Mongol funerals, said Steve Cook, an Independence, Mo., police officer and president of the Midwest Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Investigators Assn.
"It is an outlaw club," Cook said. "Their supposed Christian affiliation doesn't change my opinion."A former Set Free member said Aguilar has performed Mongol weddings and officiated at their funerals. The man, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation, said he left the group about five years ago when Aguilar began taking the church in a new direction and started recruiting tattooed bikers. Some members carry guns, he said.
"Phil always wanted to be somebody in the outlaw biker world, and he's been hiding behind the cross for a long time," the former member said. "When he began recruiting members, he figured the badder they were the better."