Bikers ‘fundraising’ for crime

Motorcycle gang members are organised criminals and the police must treat them seriously, a senior police officer has said as he attempts to ban a major event in his force.
Assistant Chief Constable Bill Holland of Warwickshire Police told Police Professional that he is concerned that Hell’s Angels and Outlaw motorcycle gangs are raising money for unlawful behaviour through events such as the Bulldog Bash.
One of the key concerns regarding the Bulldog Bash was that of public safety. The event has a violent history, including the murder of Hells Angel gang member, Gerry Tobin, by rival Outlaw gang members in 2007.
“We can demonstrate the link between the Bulldog Bash and Hell’s Angels, and we can demonstrate a link between Hell’s Angels and drugs crime,” said Mr Holland.
“We think it’s extraordinary that you can have an organised crime group holding a major fundraising festival in Warwickshire; that’s something that we think is wrong.”
Mr Holland went on to say that for a long time authorities, including the police, have not taken critical motorcycle gangs as seriously as they should have done.
“The inquiry into the death of Gerry Tobin really opened our eyes to the extent of criminality by these groups in the UK. Foreign forces in the US, Canada and Scandanavia have been very aware of the activities of these people and how serious it has been for some time.
“We’re now getting up to speed very quickly as a result of what we found out from the case of Gerry Tobin and other incidents. We now realise how serious the threat from these people is and we are addressing it.”
Most recently West Midlands Police secured six-year prison sentences for seven motorcycle gang members after a violent conflict broke out at Birmingham International Airport.
Mark Moseley, 46, Neile Harrison, 46, Mark Price, 51, Jeremy Ball, 46, Paul Arlett, 36, Sean Timmins, 39, and Leonard Hawthorne, 53, were all sentenced to six years in prison last week at Birmingham County Court for riot. An eighth man, Mark Larner, failed to appear and remains at large.
On January 20, 2008, a group of Outlaws were spotted by Hells Angels getting on a flight from Alicante airport to the UK. During the time of the flight, Hell’s Angels in the UK were informed and a group of them gathered to meet the Outlaws. The Hell’s Angels knew that, coming through customs, their opponents would be unarmed and so equipped themselves with a machete, a meat cleaver, a knuckle duster, knives and other weapons.
Following the arrival of the Outlaws, a mass brawl ensued. Three men were injured, one to a serious degree after receiving a blow to the head. Fortunately, no members of the general public were harmed.
Detective Inspector Iain Grant, of West Midlands Police, led the investigation.
“This was a significant disturbance played out in the full glare of a busy international airport terminal. Families returning to Birmingham from their holidays were forced to take cover as the two groups attacked each other with gratuitous violence.
“Weapons were produced and used and a number of individuals within the groups suffered significant injuries,” he said.
Within the West Midlands region both the Hell’s Angels and Outlaws are designated as organised crime groups.
The ingrained hatred between the gangs continues to escalate. West Midlands Police has established a pattern between incidents at the Bulldog Bash and developments worldwide within the motorcycle gang community.
•In 1998, the Outlaws made a specific threat to bomb the Bulldog Bash, leading to a major police operation.
•On August 12, 2001, a Hell’s Angels member was shot on the M40 as he left the Bulldog Bash. This was treated as an attempted murder, and the circumstances were almost identical to the murder of Gerry Tobin in 2007. 
The victim of the 2001 attack was shot three times in the leg. The injured party and those accompanying him refused to make a formal complaint or provide statements, as is the custom with Hell’s Angels and other Outlaw motorcycle