White Trash Networks : News

A Canberra bikie will fight allegations he breached his parole after police said they caught him clutching a metal baseball bat on a Wanniassa street late at night.
Alex Bourne, 28, pleaded not guilty to driving an unregistered vehicle and possessing an offensive weapon with intent during a brief appearance in the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday.
He was arrested earlier this month over a breach of parole conditions imposed when he was sentenced for a bashing linked to a bikie gang dispute that stemmed from an unpaid motorcycle repair bill.
Bourne last year pleaded guilty in the ACT Supreme Court to assault occasioning bodily harm over the attack, which he carried out with another member of the Rebels outlaw motorcycle group in January 2014.

Court documents said police had noticed an empty white Mitsubishi sedan stopped in the middle of McBryde Crescent, Wanniassa, shortly after 10pm on Sunday, January 3.
The car allegedly still had its engine running, headlights on and the driver's side front door was open.
Police said they then noticed the defendant walking towards the car with a black-coloured metal baseball bat in his hand.
When they approached Bourne and asked him why he was holding the bat, he allegedly said: "I was chasing f...ing idiots in a red car who tried to run me off the road.
"There was five of them and only me.
"They were acting stupid, stopping and driving off in front of me, they nearly hit me and I have lost one of my hubcaps."
Bourne told police he believed the group was in a red van in the nearby Erindale Shopping Centre car park, but officers allegedly could not see any cars or people in the area.
They searched the sedan and found a second wooden baseball bat which had been broken into two pieces.
Further checks revealed Bourne's parole conditions banned him from possessing or controlling an offensive weapon.
The registration on his car had also been suspended due to a previous defect notice.
Prosecutors previously opposed Bourne's bail due to the breach, but his defence lawyer argued his client didn't know the baseball bat was considered an offensive weapon and had otherwise complied with his parole conditions.
The court heard Bourne's case will be back in court for a hearing in July.
His bail was continued.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/canberra-bikie-allegedly-caught-with-a-baseball-bat-pleads-not-guilty-20160124-gmd8os.html#ixzz3yId3cCRe

A Stanhope Gardens residence has been raided as part of a Strike Force Raptor operation targeting outlawed motocycle gangs in the Blacktown area.

Officers also raided an alleged Mongols Outlaw Motorcycle Gang (OMCG) clubhouse, seizing bottles of alcohol and other items, in Blacktown on Monday morning.

About 7.30am officers from State Crime Command's Strike Force Raptor searched the alleged clubhouse on Forge Street with the assistance of officers from North West Metropolitan Region, Police Rescue Squad, and Police Dog Unit.

The raid followed investigations into a violent incident at Blacktown in September 2015, involving a senior member of the Mongols OMCG.

During the search warrant, officers found 51 bottles of alcohol, cash, and other items allegedly used in the illegal supply of alcohol.

The items were seized and will undergo forensic examinations.

A 54-year-old man - allegedly a member of the Mongols Outlaw Motorcycle Gang - was served with a Firearm Prohibition order.

Officers then searched a home on Blacksmith Close in Stanhope Gardens, where they allegedly seized a set of knuckle dusters and other items. The items will undergo forensic examination.

Investigations are continuing.

http://www.blacktownsun.com.au/story/3685528/alleged-gang-clubhouse-raided-in-stanhope-gardens/

WACO -- The McLennan County District Attorney's office is asking for more time before the first biker involved in the Twin Peaks Shooting goes to trial.

According to court documents, the District Attorney's office has filed a motion for continuance for the trial of Matthew Clendennen, which was set for February 29th in December.

District Attorney Abel Reyna says he needs more time.

The State is still waiting on at least two more rounds of discovery materials, as well as further testing and analysis of firearm ballistics and firearm DNA analysis. This is expected to take up to a year to complete.

Other pieces of evidence include social media analysis, non-firearm DNA, and processing and analyzing cell phone data.

http://www.kcentv.com/story/31063562/district-attorneys-office-files-motion-of-continuance-for-twin-peaks-bikers-trial

Police learnt early last year of attempts by the group, which originated in the Netherlands, to set up chapters in New South Wales.

Gang squad officers charged four alleged Satudarah members earlier this month.

Zachary Shvetsoff, 22, pleaded not guilty to drug possession and supply, and consorting with offenders, after being warned not to.

Police alleged the drug offences involved more than three grams of methamphetamine and occurred in Bankstown last November.

Ashley Biady, aged 29, pleaded not guilty to hindering police.

Shvetsoff's third charge stated that he did "habitually consort with convicted offenders ... Joshua Biady, Ashley Biady and Leif Albertsen ... after having been given official warning".

He is required to report to police daily as part of his bail conditions and is banned from going within 50 metres of an address in Bankstown.

Shvetsoff was also ordered not to associate with or contact the three men who are the subjects of his consorting charge.

Another two men, including the chapter president, will face court next month.

Police said at the time of the arrests they had shut down the group's Sydney chapter based in Bankstown.

The group's international website still lists the Sydney chapter, as well as chapters in northern New South Wales, Brisbane and Adelaide.

Worldwide, the majority of its members are still in the Netherlands, but Satudarah also has a presence in several other European countries, as well as south-east Asia, Canada and Morocco.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-27/pair-plead-not-guilty-after-satudarah-bikie-crackdown-in-sydney/7117482

FLEMINGTON - Four members of the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club have been indicted on 45 counts of weapons and drug charges following their End of Summer Bash at a Route 22 restaurant.

Hunterdon County Prosecutor Anthony P. Kearns III said the four were arrested on Aug. 22, 2015 by the Clinton Township Police Department following a motor vehicle stop on Route 22 by Clinton Township police near Potterstown Road.

Charged were Rocco P. Gullatta of Aurora, Ohio; Kerry K. Kester of Massilon, Ohio; Joshua R. Woods of Akron, Ohio; and Justin D. Morris of Canton, Ohio.

They were arrested after the Newark Chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club held a public social gathering at a highway restaurant, Kearns said.

The arrests came after officers from the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office, New Jersey State Police, Readington Township and Clinton Township saw people loading large knives, machetes and other weapons into the trunk of a silver Chevy Malibu with an Arizona license plate in the restaurant parking lot, Kearns said.

Several of these individuals were also seen carrying concealed weapons, Kearns added.

Gullatta was charged with 11 counts of unlawful possession of a weapon, 11 counts of certain persons not to possess a weapon and one count of possessing methamphetamine.

Kester is charged with 12 counts of unlawful possession of a weapon, 13 counts of a certain persons not to possess a weapon and one count of possession of a prohibited weapon.

Woods is charged with 12 counts of unlawful possession of a weapon and one count of possessing cocaine.

Morris is charged with 10 counts of unlawful possession of a weapon.

“I want to commend the efforts of the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office Gangs, Guns and Narcotics Task Force, who collaborated with the New Jersey State Police, the Clinton Township Police Department and the Readington Township Police Department," Kearns said. "This is a tribute to the perseverance of our state and local law enforcement that diligently serves our community through numerous means including continually utilizing intelligence gathering techniques to diligently protect this county and keep our citizens safe.”

http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/hunterdon-county/2016/01/26/four-hells-angels-indicted-hunterdon-county/79366060/

Two men were sent to the hospital Tuesday afternoon after a fight between suspected rival biker gang members broke out.

Shortly before 3 p.m., a man got out of his pickup truck and began fighting a motorcyclist stopped on Rosedale Highway and Calloway Drive, Bakersfield Police Department Sgt. Daniel McAfee said. One of the men was stabbed during the fight.

Both men were taken to a hospital, one for the knife wound and the other for an unknown leg injury, McAfee said.

“We don’t know if he sustained it (the leg injury) as a result of the motorcycle or something different,” McAfee said.

Rosedale Highway was closed to eastbound traffic from Dean Road to Calloway Drive.

The case is under investigation as the BPD is interviewing witnesses and the men involved, McAfee said. The road was busy when the fight happened, which provided a lot of witnesses.

“We are still trying to decipher through the witness accounts and piece everything together,” McAfee said. “It can be over something that started on the roadway, but we think at this point that it has to do with two rival motorcycle clubs.”

http://www.bakersfield.com/frontpage/2016/01/26/two-sent-to-hospital-after-suspected-biker-gang-fight.html

]img]http://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/8e1f2a0ff3d2c6450edbd8183ba9e8cc?width=650[/img]

BANDIDO bikie bosses will be told to rip down fortifications at their Brunswick clubhouse made infamous by the shooting of high-profile former member Toby Mitchell.

Legal moves to remove fortifications at the warehouse building in Weston St were taken more than a month ago.

But Echo detectives will soon discuss with Bandido chapter president Peter Algie, a close associate of Mitchell’s, the terms of its anti-fortification measures.

The clubhouse, adjacent to Doherty’s Gym, has iron gates, CCTV cameras and other security measures such as reinforced windows protecting it from attack.

The Hells Angels, Comancheros and Bros have already been slapped with anti-fortification notices and been forced to remodel their clubhouses to be compliant.

Police mediate with club office bearers to make the building’s compliant.

The infamous Brunswick clubhouse was raided in 2014 when some Bandidos were embroiled in the homicide investigation over the bashing murder of Michael Strike.

Mr Strike was walking east along Weston St towards the clubhouse the last time he was seen alive.

He died as a result of an assault and his body was found near Keilor Cemetery.

Police allege Luke Paul Maybus, 28 and John Peter Walker, 38, fatally assaulted Mr Strike inside the Bandido clubhouse before his body was moved to Keilor.

A court was told last year Mr Strike’s blood was found in the clubhouse.

Mr Maybus and Mr Walker have pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Strike.

An alleged accessory, Joseph Girgis, has pleaded not guilty to being an accessory to murder.

The accused men are awaiting trial this year.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/law-order/bandidos-forced-to-rip-down-fortifications-at-brunswick-clubhouse/news-story/ea1a8f392b9339847694dbade668de5d

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is concerned about the arrival of a new motorcycle gang in Finland, according to Swedish language daily Hufvudstadsbladet.

The arriving international motorcycle gang is Satudarah MC, a group that unlike most motorcycle gangs, welcomes people of all races into their clubs.

Satudarah MC has more than 40 chapters in the Netherlands and is active in several countries around the world.

Police say the gang, which was started in 1990 in the Netherlands, is very violent and responsible for crimes like drug trafficking, murder, extortion and still others.

The gang is helped by its all-race inclusive practices, according to NBI detective chief Rabbe von Hertzen.

If the integration of migrants is unsuccessful, there could be [a source of] potential new gang members among the new arrivals, von Hertzen told the paper.

http://yle.fi/uutiset/wednesdays_papers_odins_domestic_abusers_new_biker_gang_berner_on_posti_future/8627382

A Head Hunters organisation claiming to be a charity that helps rehabilitate released prisoners has been removed from the Charities Register.

The Charities Registration Board, a branch of the Department of Internal Affairs, decided to remove the That Was Then This Is Now Charitable Trust from the Charities Register after discovering the trust was not doing what it claimed.

The trust was set up in 2001, with Head Hunters members at the helm, including president of the gang's East Chapter, Wayne Doyle.

In 2008 it was granted charitable status after claiming its purpose was to reintegrate and rehabilitate released prisoners by providing education and social services to those at-risk or in need.

In a decision released in December, the Charities Registration Board said the trust was not reintegrating prisoners or advancing any other charitable purposes.

"Instead, the Trust's purpose is to provide benefits to the Head Hunters Motorcycle Club (Head Hunters), its members, associates and their families.

"This is not a charitable purpose."

To be registered as a charity, a trust must have exclusively charitable purposes, and be available to a "sufficient section" of the public, the decision said.

The trust plans to appeal the decision to remove it from the register at the High Court.

The Head Hunters is an outlaw motorcycle gang set up in Auckland in the 1960s, and is often associated with the production and sale of methamphetamine.

The gang has made headlines in recent years following large-scale police drug busts and the murder of member Connor Morris.

The Charities Commission launched its investigation into the trust's activities in 2010 due to its concerns over Head Hunters involvement.

That Was Then This Is Now Charitable Trust's premises were also the gang's East Chapter headquarters in the Auckland suburb of Mt Wellington.

East 88 Property Holdings owns the trust's premises. That company is owned by Head Hunters Members and directed by Doyle.

The facilities on Marua Rd include a swimming pool and gym facilities but are not open for use to the public or local schools as claimed by the trust.

It is also the same location as Fight Club 88, a mixed martial arts gym frequented by Head Hunters members.

The decision said the premises was used as free or cheap accommodation for Head Hunters and their families, gang members were allowed to use the trust's car in a way that breached bail conditions and the gym facilities were not open to the public or local schools, as the trust had claimed.

The Charities Registration Board also said its investigation found the trust did not carry out drug and alcohol counselling, or prisoner mentoring at Waikeria Prison, as it claimed.

Waitemata DHB Community Alcohol and Drug Services confirmed it had referred clients to the trust but this was before the trust was registered as a charitable entity and did not pertain to its current activities, according to the decision.

And while it listed one of its charitable endeavours as donating to charitable causes, those donations accounted for just 3 per cent of the trust's spending during the year to March 2015 and 1 per cent the previous year.

It did, however, use trust money to provide refreshments for a Head Hunters funeral, and contribute towards the cost of a circus.

In 2013, the trust won an appeal to be granted a licence to conduct a lottery exceeding $50,000 by the Gambling Commission, following a failed application in 2011.

Following the trust's application to carry out the lottery the Department of Internal Affairs obtained a report from police that expressed concern about what the money would be used for.

"A licensed class 3 raffle has the potential to be misused as a vehicle for the laundering of cash acquired from illegal activity (such as drug sales).

Police also said they worried any significant cash located at premises associated with the gang could be "explained away" as being takings from the sale of raffle tickets.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/76322675/head-hunters-charity-removed-from-charities-register

It's eviction day for the Hamilton chapter of the Hells Angels.

Police were on site at the motorcycle gang's clubhouse at Gage Avenue North and Beach Road on Thursday morning, helping the bailiff with "an eviction proceeding," said Const. Steve Welton of Hamilton Police Services. Officers from the OPP's biker enforcement unit were there too.

Neighbours say police arrived on scene around 8:30 a.m., and they saw workers drill open a lock at the clubhouse. There appeared to be about three unmarked vans and two cruisers on scene on Thursday morning.

There are no criminal investigations at the site. Rather, the Hells Angels were being evicted for a dispute over whether they paid the rent, said Neil Emerson of Halton Bailiff Services, which handled the case.

Emerson wouldn't say how much the owner said the Hells Angels owed, only that the biker gang disagreed with the owner.

"There is an honest dispute," he said. "This was a calculation matter and it's something the parties are going to have to resolve between them."

The club members were polite and not confrontational, he said.

"They were fully cooperative with the police and the bailiffs. There was no hostility involved."

The property is owned by Greg Tilley, who according to 2009 media reports was the one-time owner of the Gage Tavern, which used to be located at 105 Beach Rd.

The owner owes the city three years worth of back taxes, said Larry Friday, the city's director of taxation. That's the equivalent of $69,452.37.

There is a city lien on the property, Friday said. If that's not rectified by the spring, the property goes up for sale for back taxes in May.

The clubhouse was home to about a dozen Hells Angels members, said Det. Staff Sgt. Len Isner, head of the OPP biker enforcement unit. It was also shared with a handful of Red Devils biker gang members.

The clubhouse was active, Isner said, and an important part of the Hamilton chapter's identity. Another clubhouse will likely pop up somewhere else in Hamilton.

"They use those things to make money and have a place for their membership to attend," he said. "It's their flagship."

The club has been on Beach Road for about five years, Isner said. Before that, there was a clubhouse on Lottridge that was seized by authorities.

Many clubhouses are owned by the gangs themselves, Isner said. But increasingly, the gang is renting clubhouses so the properties can't be seized through the civil remedies act.

Good neighbours

The Hamilton chapter started in 2005 and is one of 14 in Ontario, Isner said. The gang has about 6,000 members worldwide, he said, and deep ties in the crime world.

In Hamilton, the Beach Road clubhouse is a fortress-like brown, red and white building with locked gates protecting the side parking lot. Its windows are covered and barred.

Antonietta Tirabassi lives next door to the clubhouse with her 18-month-old son. She's never had an issue with the bikers as neighbours.

"I feel like they're protecting our neighbourhood," she said. "Honestly, people fear the name so they don't want to start problems in their territory. To me, I think it's honestly helping our neighbourhood. There were drug dealers in here and they got them out…I've never, ever had a problem with them."

Trevor Hayle, who lives nearby, agrees. The biker gang members are even quiet during parties, he said.

Impact doesn't go away

"Honestly, they're better than normal people having a house party."

Matthew Green, Ward 3 councillor, isn't surprised by that sentiment. The presence of the clubhouse sent the message that the neighbourhood was Hells Angels turf.

"I'm sure if you asked residents of the community, they probably felt really safe," he said. But "they're an outlaw motorcycle gang with known ties to organized crime."

"I'm hopeful that whoever takes control of that particular building next takes the logos and insignias off of our streets and out of our neighbourhood. But I'm under no illusion that their impact on the community goes away because their clubhouse does."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/news/hells-angels-getting-evicted-from-north-hamilton-clubhouse-1.3423767

img]http://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/3b311dfcb5bff96b4695fc10eb980c45?width=650[/img]

THE two-state raids that smashed the powerful Nomads bikie gang last year are now in jeopardy because the alleged victim has admitted his injuries were self-inflicted, a court has heard.

Lawyers for 12 outlaws accused of kidnapping and brutalising an Adelaide man say he must explain, prior to trial, “glaring inconsistencies” and “constant changes” in his evidence.

They also want the man to reveal what inducements and promises SA Police’s Crime Gangs Task Force have offered to secure his testimony against the Nomads.

In a sworn statement, viewed by The Advertiser, the alleged victim claims gang members poured petrol onto his forearm and then set it alight with a lighter.

In a subsequent statement, however, the man admits he burned himself during a failed home invasion — but insists “everything else, apart from that, is true”.

On Thursday, barrister Craig Caldicott told the Adelaide Magistrates Court that the Nomads would not receive a fair trial unless the man’s evidence was rigorously tested.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/sa-court-told-alleged-victim-of-nomads-kidnapping-extortion-injured-himself-and-blamed-bikies/news-story/59929eee9ed02c439fcfcd90d8c41a26

Northern Territory Police are investigating how three patched motorcycle vests worth $15,000 were stolen from a private residence in the Darwin rural suburb of Virginia.
Superintendent Clint Sims from the Drug and Organised Crime Squad said three patched Rebels Outlaw Motor Cycle Gang (OMCG) vests were stolen some time between 4.30pm and 8.50pm last Friday.
“It’s believed the vests have a value of up to $15,000 each,” he said.

A Rebels member commented on the NT police's Facebook post claiming that they had 'retrieved' the stolen 'colours' and that police involved themselves without them requiring assistance.
However, the Rebels member, who prefers to not be named, told Daily Mail Australia that the vests do not have any monetary value - rather the $15,000 is indicative of personal worth as opposed to market value - and that is the amount they will earn for handing a rival club's colours to their president.
He said that the valued patch colours are 'earned, not bought.'
According to a police spokesperson, each patch is paid for by the member which cost a few thousand dollars each.

The Rebels are classified as an outlaw motorcycle gang in the Northern Territory with approximately 70 chapters and more than 2,000 members.
According to ABC News Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw has told them they are not welcome in the Top End after an incident that happened last year between the OMCG and their rival club, the Comancheros.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3420315/Foolhardy-thieves-break-private-residence-Virginia-Northern-Territory-steal-official-Rebel-jackets-worth-15-000-EACH.html#ixzz3yajCoI00

A MACKAY bikie has claimed police have harassed him and prevented charities benefiting from the bike shows outlaw motorcycle clubs run.

In a submission to a taskforce reviewing the bikie laws, a Mackay Rebels member denied the club members were criminals or that any Mackay members had been convicted of crimes.

The man, whose name has been redacted, said the anti-bikie laws cost him a relationship and prevented him from spending time with friends also in the gang.

"We cannot go for a ride without been pulled over and harassed, searched for no reason," he said.

He told the Queensland Government Taskforce on Organised Crime Legislation police had harassed Rebels members and had urged members of the public to distance themselves from club members.

"We have had police going to our employers and real estate agents advising them that they are selling or renting to a person who is a member of a criminal organisation," he submitted.

The man said he believed licensing restrictions that covered tattoo artists and tow truck drivers could be extended to ban suspected bikies from other jobs.

"People that are members or associates of outlaw motorcycle clubs, and work in the electrical or plumbing industry will have their licence revoked, as they are considered a threat to society also."

Despite submissions from people affected by the laws, including many from bikies, police have stood by the laws - submitting to the taskforce they have helped curb bikie criminal activity.

"The QPS considers that the legislation put in place in 2013 has been effective for the purposes for which it was enacted," the police submission stated.

"For example, OMCGs are no longer using their public presence in a mass way to intimidate and facilitate criminal offending."

The taskforce is due to report back by March 31.

http://www.dailymercury.com.au/news/rebels-arent-criminals/2913985/

A Taranaki drug dealer with links to the Head Hunters outlaw motorcycle gang has pleaded guilty to a raft of drug charges.

Te Teripa Taylor, 23, appeared before Judge Allan Roberts in the New Plymouth District Court on Thursday facing 15 charges of supplying methamphetamine.

Taylor was among six people arrested in December as part of a police drug sting named Operation Chiefs targeting the supply of the Class A narcotic and the involvement of an organised crime syndicate.

Police prosecutor Detective Sergeant Dave McKenzie withdrew five of the charges and Taylor pleaded guilty to the remaining 10.

The police summary of facts states the operation used data obtained from cell phones and other covert investigative techniques.

A number of New Plymouth residents were exposed as drug dealers and having links to the Head Hunters gang, which was predominantly based in Auckland.

Taylor was identified as a supplier of methamphetamine to a number of drug dealers and users in Taranaki.

He would set up the sale and supply of the drug predominantly via text message.

"The defendant would either confirm that he was presently in possession of methamphetamine or advise when he was able to obtain some.

"It is very common in the text communication that the defendant would use code words when communicating with somebody about the purchase of methamphetamine."

Between August and September Taylor offered to supply about 28 grams of the drug.

The street value of methamphetamine is understood to be about $1000 a gram.

Police executed multiple search warrants on December 9 as a result of the operation and Taylor was stopped in a vehicle leaving at one of the houses searched.

A set of digital scales and two glass pipes, used to smoke methamphetamine, were discovered in the vehicle.

Taylor admitted to police he had been selling drugs since June 2015, buying a couple of grams at a time and then passing it on to others.

He said he had been selling methamphetamine to help his mother out financially.

Roberts remanded Taylor, on bail, to reappear on March 24 for sentencing.

He ordered a full pre-sentence report to be prepared but gave no indication what Taylor's sentence would be.

Earlier this month a patched member of the Head Hunters East Auckland chapter, Craig Andrew Waikato, pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearm, pistol and ammunition and was remanded on bail for sentencing on February 2.

A brother and sister, Ben and Sarah Howe, each pleaded guilty to four charges of offering to sell meth between August and December and were remanded on bail to reappear for sentencing on March 9.

Meanwhile Regan Graham Coutts and Ewyn Ngamaanaka Ashby have pleaded not guilty to multiple charges related to the supply of the class A drug and will re-appear in court for a case review hearing on March 10.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/76372494/taranaki-drug-dealer-caught-in-headhunters-sting-operation

Three members of a Las Vegas motorcycle gang have been sentenced up to three years in prison on fraud charges.

State Attorney General Adam Laxalt says Michael Hughes, Gary Kruger and Steven Shaw were arrested for concealing a motorcycle that was reported stolen in order to receive an insurance payout.

The multi-agency operation also led to the seizure of dozens of guns and several pounds of drugs.

Copyright 2015 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.ktnv.com/news/3-members-of-motorcycle-gang-sentenced-for-fraud

Shooting and a stabbing broke out at a motorcycle show in Denver on Saturday afternoon, leaving one person dead and seven people injured, authorities said.

Two rival motorcycle clubs were "possibly" involved in the violence at the Colorado Motorcycle Expo, police Chief Robert White said at a press conference.

The Denver Post quoted a witness, who didn't want to be identified because of fear of retaliation, as saying the violence involved rival biker gangs. Video taken after the shooting showed police talking to groups of men wearing jackets with motorcycle club patches.

White said about 10,000 people were inside the National Western Complex hall at 12:45 p.m. (2:45 p.m. ET) when shots were fired.

Investigators think two or more people exchanged gunfire, he said, but the cause of the shooting is still being investigated.

One person was fatally shot and three were wounded by gunfire, White said. One person was stabbed and three other people suffered injuries probably caused in a fight, but not by weapons, he said.
No arrests have been made but people are being questioned.

"Whether it was motorcycle gang-related or motorcycle club-related, that is yet to be determined," the chief said.

Sunday motorcycle expo canceled

The 38th annual expo for Sunday has been canceled, according to the city, but the Arenacross event will go on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon at the National Western Complex. Arenacross has no relation to the expo, the release said.

People who were inside the hall said the violence happened quickly.

Britney Shaw, who was working at a jewelry stand, told the Post she saw a group of about 50 men brawling on the stairs, which were covered in blood and cordoned off.

Bob Cook, who was running a booth for leather goods, told the Post he heard shots and saw people dive under tables. He didn't know what caused the shooting but said that minutes later the scene returned to normal despite puddles of blood on the floor.

White was asked whether any law enforcement officers were members of the motorcycle clubs at the expo. White said he didn't know. He said, however, "There were no Denver police officers involved."

The Saturday expo continued after the shooting. When asked why it wasn't shut down immediately, White said authorities thought the scene was safe because of the heavy police presence and because most people had vacated the building.

Hospital locked down after shooting

Authorities provided slightly different numbers of injured people.

White said seven people were injured. Earlier in the day, a Denver Health Medical Center doctor said six people were hurt, with three in critical condition and three in stable condition. Before that, Denver Health had tweeted that nine people had been taken to area hospitals.

As a safety precaution, the hospital emergency department at the hospital was locked down until about 4:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. ET), according to a medical center tweet.

"We wanted to make sure the incident didn't spread from the expo to the hospital," White said.

The complex is near the Denver Coliseum. Police initially tweeted that the incident occurred at the coliseum.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/30/us/denver-coliseum-shooting-stabbing/

DENVER (AP) - The Latest on shooting and stabbing incident that left one dead and seven others injured at a motorcycle expo (all times local):

1:30 p.m.

Police say more than one person opened fire during a deadly weekend brawl at a Denver motorcycle show, but they still don't know who fired the fatal shot.

Major Crimes Cmdr. Ron Saunier says investigators still are examining several guns and interviewing witnesses about the Saturday melee that left one dead and seven others injured at the crowded Colorado Motorcycle Expo.

Attorneys for two biker groups, including one made up of law enforcement, have blamed each other for inciting the violence. No arrests have been made.

Saunier says one of the groups is being more cooperative with police than the other, which he described as an outlaw gang.

A Colorado Department of Corrections officer opened fire, but Saunier says there's no sign that he did so in his official capacity.

9:55 a.m.

No one has been arrested after a weekend brawl at a Denver motorcycle show that left one dead and seven others injured.

Attorneys for two biker groups, including one made up mostly of law enforcement, have blamed each other for inciting the violence. The medical examiner's office said Monday that 46-year-old Victor Mendoza was shot and killed Saturday.

Stephen Stubbs, an attorney for the Mongols Motorcycle Club, says the man killed was a member of that group.

A Colorado Department of Corrections officer and member of the Iron Order Motorcycle Club opened fire during the melee, but police haven't said whether he fired the fatal shot and have reported no arrests.

John C. Whitfield, who represents Iron Order, says Mongols jumped its members, instigating the fight.

Stubbs says Iron Order members started it.

http://www.koaa.com/story/31110941/the-latest-not-known-who-fired-fatal-shot-in-biker-brawl

PATCHED gang members claim police have abused their powers by pointing a rifle at a teenager’s head and causing a bikie’s wife to miscarriage from stress.

Other members say the controversial anti-bikie laws have prevented them from attending funerals and birthday parties for fear of being nabbed.

The allegations are contained in a series of submissions to Supreme Court Justice Alan Wilson, head of the taskforce reviewing the state’s VLAD legislation.

A Rebels bikie told the commission he had a “clean criminal record” but the stress of a police raid and an “association” arrest caused his charity worker wife to miscarriage twice.

“My wife is the customer service manager and works at St Vinnie’s on the weekends,” he wrote in the submission.

“Since these laws have come in, we have been raided for ‘bike club paraphernalia’, which we believe caused my wife to miscarry our child twice.

“Once after being raided and again after being arrested for association.”

The bikie said he was an avid environmentalist who recycled, kept a compost heap and conserved water.

“We pay rates, conserve water, recycle and composte (sic),” he wrote.

“I spent eight days in the local watch house in my work clothes for “associating” (getting a ride home with mates) because the prosecutor is allowed to keep me for a week before a bail hearing.”

The anti-association laws were established after the infamous Broadbeach brawl in 2013 where about 50 Bandidos stormed a restaurant.

Another former bikie complained he could not see his friends at funerals or birthday parties and a third bikie complained Taskforce Maxima officers pointed an assault rifle at his 13-year-old daughter during a raid.

“(There was an) illegal search at our home with up (to) 30 plain-clothed officers including masked gunmen ... (and) my 13-year-old daughter had an assault rifle pointed at her head.

“I was illegally detained in handcuffs, with four assault rifles pointed at me while officers searched our home and belongings for people and possessions that were not at our home.”

Another Rebels bikie member, who was found guilty of threatening people with a bat in a home invasion in 2014, complained he could no longer attend birthday parties with other bikies.

“These draconian laws have had adverse effects on my human rights,” he wrote in the submission.

“I can no longer celebrate birthdays, anniversary’s (sic), or even have the right to attend the funeral services of friends and loved ones under these laws.”

The Queensland Police Service declined to comment on the submission but Commissioner Ian Stewart has previously backed the laws.

Mr Wilson, as chairmen of the Taskforce into the Organised Crime Legislation, is due to release a review into the VLAD laws on March 31.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/national/bikie-gang-members-claim-police-actions-caused-miscarriage/news-story/f10777baf8bfe33637d614126c52dfdf

THE PROSECUTION has failed in a bid to resurrect the case against three accused torturers after their victims failed to turn up to court.

Former Finks bikie Dion Spizzirri, Jason Edward Myers and Jae Damon Cook were charged with torture, grievous bodily harm and deprivation of liberty in relation to an alleged Parkwood home invasion in March 2013.

Police allege that the men tortured a woman during a five-hour interrogation in an attempt to find Spizzirri’s missing Uzi.

Another man was allegedly assaulted with a handgun so badly in Nerang that he was knocked unconscious and taken to hospital.

The charges were dropped following a prosecution bungle in February last year — when key evidence from a coercive Crime and Misconduct Commission hearing was deemed inadmissable.

The men were recharged with the same offences six weeks later.

In the Southport Magistrates Court yesterday the prosecution applied to adjourn a committal hearing after all three victims failed to turn up to give evidence.

Police prosecutor Senior Sergeant Damien Summerfield asked for the magistrate to issue warrants for their arrests in a bid to get them to testify.

Snr Sgt Summerfield said the charges were “very serious” and said the alleged torture victim’s DNA was located on the barrel of a handgun located at Spizzirri’s home.

“They are the ones that know the truth of what happened,” he said.

“They would be bound to tell the truth as the evidence has already been sworn previously under oath.

“The detectives have been in contact with them, there are concerns that other people have also contacted them.”

He said without the witnesses the prosecution could not be successful.

“If this wasn’t such a serious matter, I wouldn’t be further pushing the issuing of warrants for these poor people.”

Spizzirri’s barrister Tony Kimmins said the victims were forced to testify at a CMC hearing but had never made police statements.

Mr Kimmins said police decided to recharge the men with the hope that the witnesses would come to court.

Myers’ barrister Bernard Riley said his client was held in custody on the charge and had been on strict bail conditions since he’d been recharged.

“This needs to be brought to an end today,” he said.

Magistrate Chris Callaghan said it was obvious the victims didn’t want to co-operate.

“It seems they’re determined not to give evidence, for whatever reason,” he said.

“Perhaps there’s been some threat, I don’t know.”

He said the victims, on the Crown case, had “been through enough” with the torture and refused to issue a warrant.

“The court doesn’t want to torture them any further.”

Charges were dropped against the men for the second time.

http://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/news/crime-court/torture-charges-against-former-bikie-and-two-men-over-alleged-home-invasion-dropped-for-second-time/news-story/1dfb39b5239607c48d76cfd93ca205e1

SUNSHINE Coast police boss Darryl Johnson says bikies' "one per cent" claim will ensure they remain a focus of criminal investigations.

Superintendent Johnson detailed the position of Sunshine Coast police in response to claims officers had allowed ice onto Queensland streets because they were too busy targeting bikies.

In a submission to a taskforce reviewing the bikie laws, a Sunshine Coast-based Rebels gang member accused police of ignoring other crimes in order to target bikies.

The Rebel, whose name was redacted from the submission, said he made the submission "out of fear for my family and many other families' future".

"The targeting of organised crime is essential to the safety of all Queenslanders and I believe has the full support of all Queenslanders. Anyone involved in crime would be happy for the police spend all their time and resources on anything but the real organised crime for obvious reasons," the submission said.

"Since the targeting of bikies has begun crime has risen and the drug ice is in plague proportion in our towns and cities. This is a devastating drug and needs urgent attention but while police are focusing on bikies the real organised crime goes unchecked."

Supt Johnson said the supply and possession of all dangerous drugs was a priority for the Queensland Police Service.

"Sunshine Coast police actively investigate people who traffic and use dangerous drugs including ice and where sufficient evidence exists, arrest and charge those people including people who are members or associates of Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs," Supt Johnson said.

"We make no apologies for this strategy as we are striving to ensure our Sunshine Coast community is as safe as possible."

He said historically, a large proportion of members of Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs had been involved in some type of organised crime.

"Outlaw Motor Cycle Gang members identify themselves as the one per cent of the community who commit criminality.

"Therefore, Queensland police will continue to target those members who identify themselves as an Outlaw Motor Cycle Gang member.

"However, we will continue to have an interest in all criminal activity regardless of association with Outlaw Motor Cycle Gang or other established criminal networks."

Police have stood by the Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment Act- or anti-bikie laws- submitting to the taskforce they have helped curb bikie criminal activity.

"The Queensland Police Service considers that the legislation put in place in 2013 has been effective for the purposes for which it was enacted," the police submission stated.

"For example, Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs are no longer using their public presence in a mass way to intimidate and facilitate criminal offending."

The taskforce is due to report back to Queensland Parliament by March 31.

http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/cops-to-keep-heat-on-bikies/2917325/

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