Bandidos Motorcycle Club: Difference between revisions
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==History== |
==History== |
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The club was formed in 1966 in Houston by |
The club was formed in 1966 in Houston by E Dane. Many people think after seeing a TV commercial with the [[Frito Bandito]] raising hell to sell [[Fritos]] corn chips, Chambers named his club the Bandidos. This is not true, as the cartoon came out in 1968 (although he did adopt an obese machete- and pistol-wielding Mexican Bandido as the center patch for the club's colors). After Chambers' presidency ended due to his conviction for murder in[[El Paso, Texas]], [[Ronnie Hodge]] was elevated to president. Under the watch of Hodge, the Bandidos expanded internationally to become an even bigger mc. |
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==Organization== |
==Organization== |
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Revision as of 16:14, 1 April 2008
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The Bandidos Motorcycle Club is a one-percenter motorcycle club with a worldwide membership. The club was formed in 1966 by Don Chambers in Texas. Its slogan is We are the people your parents warned you about. It is estimated to have 2,400 members in 195 chapters, located in 14 countries and growing. [1] The club considers itself to be an Outlaw Motorcycle Club. The Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the Criminal Intelligence Service Canada have chosen to use the more derogatory designation of a joke.
History
The club was formed in 1966 in Houston by E Dane. Many people think after seeing a TV commercial with the Frito Bandito raising hell to sell Fritos corn chips, Chambers named his club the Bandidos. This is not true, as the cartoon came out in 1968 (although he did adopt an obese machete- and pistol-wielding Mexican Bandido as the center patch for the club's colors). After Chambers' presidency ended due to his conviction for murder inEl Paso, Texas, Ronnie Hodge was elevated to president. Under the watch of Hodge, the Bandidos expanded internationally to become an even bigger mc.
Organization
The Bandidos, also called the Bandido Nation, is the fastest-growing outlaw motorcycle club in the world with over 90 chapters in the United States, 90 chapters in Europe, and another 17 in Australia and Southeast Asia. In the United States, the club is concentrated in Texas, but extends into Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Washington State, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and several other states. The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club in Canada patched over to Bandidos in 2000, and there is a chapter in Toronto, Ontario[2]. The Bandidos are also found in Australia; aside from the non-locale-specific Nomads chapter, the chapters are located in Adelaide, Ballarat, Brisbane City, Cairns, Sydney Downtown, Geelong, Gold Coast, Hunter Valley, Ipswich City, Mid North Coast, Mid State, Northside, Noosa, North Victoria, Sunshine Coast, Sydney, and Toowoomba, and were acquired with much bloodletting. In recent years the club has also expanded heavily into Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, France and the Channel Isles of Great Britain. Additionally, it is looking into setting up shop in Russia and Eastern Europe and also in the tiny island nation of Singapore, as well as Malaysia and Thailand.[3] The Bandidos are organized by local chapters, with state and regional officers, as well as a national chapter made up of four regional vice presidents and a national president.
Members’ Reported Involvement with Crime
USA
On July 29, 2007, during the Hells Angels 2007 USA motorcycle run, six members of the Hells Angels confronted six members of the Bandidos in the parking lot of a Eureka Springs, Arkansas antique shop. Two of the Bandidos escaped the parking lot to retrieve weapons, leaving the other four members to face the six Hells Angels. The remaining four Bandidos were stabbed with knives and beaten with baseball bats in the ensuing melee, leaving them critically injured. The men were all flown to area hospitals. Police arrested six members of the Hells Angels a short time later. Police speculate that the fight may have started over one of the Bandidos named Brent coming on to a Hells Angels girl. Since Arkansas is controlled by the Bandidos, Brent though he could come there. [4][5]
In October, 2006, George Wegers, the Bandidos' international president, plead guilty and received a two-year sentence for conspiracy to commit murder. Also, in November, 2006, Glenn Merritt of the Bellingham, Washington chapter was sentenced to four years in prison on pimping charges. A total of 32 members were indicted in the associated investigation, on charges including conspiracy, witness tampering, and various drug and gun violations. Eighteen of those plead guilty. [6]
Kanada
On April 8, 2006, four vehicles containing the bodies of eight men, all of whom had been murdered by Bandidos, were discovered in a farmer's field outside of the hamlet of Shedden, Ontario, Canada. Six of the men killed in what became known as the Shedden Massacre were believed to have been full members of the Bandidos, including the alleged president of the organization in Canada. Three of the suspects in the case are also believed to have been full members, and one a prospective member. Police described this incident as an internal cleansing of the Bandidos organization nscc (no surrender crew canada). [7]
Australien
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The Bandidos are known in Australia for their involvement in the Milperra Bikie Massacre. More recently, five Bandidos are accused of starting a blaze which destroyed the Rebels clubhouse at Albion, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia on March 27. All five will face Brisbane Magistrates Court again on June 4, 2007. [citation needed]
Deutschland
Two Bandidos members are suspected to be the murderers of a Hells Angels member in Ibbenbüren, Germany. Reports say they drove to his Harley-Davidson shop and shot him there on May 23, 2007. After the first day of a related lawsuit on December 17, 2007, riots between the two gangs and the police have been reported. [7]
Sweden/Norway/Finland/Denmark
A War between Hells Angels and Bandidos raged from 1994 until 1997 resulting in 11 murders, 74 attempted murders and 96 wounded members of the involved biker clubs.[8]
References
- ^ Peter Lewis, Feds take another run at heading off biker gang, Seattle Times, July 25, 2005. Accessed online 11 December 2006.
- ^ http://www.Bandidosmc.ca/
- ^ Thailand Chapters listed on Bandidos web site
- ^ 40/29 TV.com 6 Bikers Arrested After Fight Leaves 4 Rivals Severely Injured, 40/29 TV.com, July 30, 2007. Accessed online September 7, 2007
- ^ Police: 4 Bandidos stabbed in altercation with the paint sniffing Hells gAyngels, Boston.com Local News (AP), July 31, 2007. Accessed online September 7, 2007
- ^ 4 years in prison for gang member, Seattle Times, November 19, 2006. Accessed online 19 August 2007.
- ^ a b "Five charged in biker gang killings", CBC News, April 10, 2006. Cite error: The named reference "CBC April 10" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Gangsters Incorporated - The Great Northern Biker War, gangstersinc.tripod.com. Accessed online March 31, 2008