Waco Biker Shoot-Out Tip Of the Global Iceberg
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Nine people were killed on May 17, 2015, and nearly 200 arrested after one of the worst episodes of biker gang violence in many years.
A police spokesman said the crime scene at a Waco restaurant in the US state of Texas was “probably one of the most gruesome” he had seen in 34 years. He also said almost 100 weapons had been recovered.
Such incidents, however, are not necessarily uncommon, and are not isolated to the United States.
From the BBC:
Violence and disorder among those affiliated to different motorcycling groups have been seen since the 1940s when unrest in California inspired the 1953 Marlon Brando movie The Wild One.
Following the Waco attack, many on social media are stressing that most bikers are not involved in criminal activity.
“Riding a motorcycle does not make you a criminal,” is one remark from a member of the public on the Waco police department Facebook page and “Sad day” reads a comment on the Central Texas Harley Owners Group Facebook page.
However, authorities including the California Department of Justice note that those known as “1 per centers” mark themselves out from law-abiding social clubs.
United States
The Hells Angels, Bandidos, Black Pistons, Mongols, Outlaws, Pagans, Vagos and Sons of Silence are listed by the US Department of Justice as motorbike clubs used for criminal activity including violent crime, weapons trafficking, and drug trafficking. The Hells Angels and Bandidos have the largest membership with up to 2,500 each. Hells Angels operate in 27 countries.
Later that year, according to a California state report, a biker outing in Riverside ended in rioting and two deaths.
Canada
The “Quebec biker war” between Rock Machine, allied to the Bandidos, and the Hells Angels over control of the drug trade peaked between 1992 and 2009 in Montreal.
Nearly 100 people were killed in the turf war in the 1990s, including an 11-year old boy killed by shrapnel from a car bomb in 1995.
Australia
In Australia, it is estimated there are 35 outlawed motorcycle groups with 3,500 official members. Since the 1980s there have been about 100 biker killings across the country and 1,000 shootings.
Violence over drugs and protection rackets between Hells Angels and the Comancheros has included drive-by shootings, a bomb attack and a deadly brawl in 2009 where a man associated with the Hells Angels was bludgeoned with a metal pole in front of hundreds of horrified passengers at Sydney airport.
In 2012 a former senior police officer went as far as to say the country was facing a “war”.
A “bikie-only prison” was even established north of Brisbane last year.
One of the first infamous incidents was the Milperra massacre in 1984 – involving the Bandido and Comanchero gangs. Six bikers were shot dead in a pub car park in Sydney, while a teenage 14-year-old girl was killed in the crossfire.
In 1998, Hells Angel Ronald Wait was jailed for 15 years for an attack on rivals, the Outcasts, in which two men were killed and a third injured. Malcolm St Clair was at a Rockers Reunion concert at Battersea Arts Centre in London when he was attacked with an axe and a knife.
In 2007, Hells Angel Gerry Tobin was fatally shot from a car on the M40 by Outlaw gang members as he returned from a biker festival in London.
Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Germany
Belgium was one of the first countries in the world to declare the Hells Angels anillegal organisation. A clampdown came in 1999 after violence in Belgium, Holland and Denmark. Following one of the worst clashes between the Hells Angels and rival gang the Outlaws, 10 gang members were charged with attempted manslaughter.
In 2012, police raided dozens of properties across northern Germany as part of a major investigation into the Hells Angels.
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That Hollister Riot, which inspired the Brando movie and was grossly misreported in the press and was the result of a huge number of race fans getting drunk in a small town but as in all these incidents, the public and the press who agitate them is likely to associate motorcycles with these events and not drunk men with guns. If you don’t ride, you may never have experienced the irrational fear and hostility. I’ve had my bike turned over in parking lots. People try to run you off the road. Some states have been setting up motorcycle roadblocks just to make sure some retired industrialist on a $50,000 bike isn’t a Hells Angel. Many communities near me don’t allow motorcycles. It took me over ten years to have a restriction overturned where I live and the rationale was that “if we let you have a bike, next thing you know the Angels will be partying in your back yard.”
NINE MILLION registered bikes in the US. How many are gang members? 800,000 bikes in CA, 600,000 in Florida. The demographics don’t even resemble the public perception slightly.
All I’m saying is that motorcycles are not associated with crime any more than Volkswagens are, nor are any significant part of the millions and millions who ride them associate with crime — yet it’s always “Bikers” raising hell and all because they’re “bikers” Say “motorcycle” and people think of crime. Say “gun” and people think murder. Is that any different than people who think similarly about religious or ethnic minorities?