New Mexico biker gang shootout: Man charged with murder
Police responded Saturday to a shooting that left three dead at a New Mexico motorcycle rally. (KOAT via APTN)
Sixteen alleged members of the Outcast Motorcycle Club in Georgia have been indicted in what prosecutors are calling the largest biker gang bust in state history in connection with a turf war in which they are accused of surveilling, shooting and robbing rival organizations.
Among dozens of charges in the 45 count indictment, the Outcasts are accused of surrounding a motel where members of the Chosen Few gang had gathered on Highway 17 in Richmond Hill on June 17, 2022, 22 miles southwest of Savannah.
The Outcasts are accused of tracking and intimidating Chosen Few members for months – confronting them and warning them to stay out of their territory leading up to the shooting at a crowded motel, according to the indictment.
In September 2021, a group of Outcasts allegedly chased a Chosen Few member through three counties before they caught up with him and beat him with chains, the indictment reads.
Members of the Outcast Motorcycle Club take part in a vigil in Ferguson, Missouri, August 16, 2014. (REUTERS/Lucas Jackson )
In April 2022, a group of Outcasts allegedly crashed a meeting of the Southeastern Georgia Motorcycle Club Association and "asserted their dominance of the southeast Georgia territory."
Leading up to the June 2022 shootout, chapter President Melaun "Do Wurk" Aiken allegedly tailed a group of eight Chosen Few members who eventually stopped at a restaurant called Flaco's Tacos on Highway 17.
The Chosen Few members went to the nearby Red Roof Inn, where he allegedly called fellow Outcasts to encircle the building and hold up the rivals at gunpoint.
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The busy Red Roof Inn and Flaco's Tacos parking lot, where prosecutors say a group of Outcast biker gang members held up a rival group at gunpoint. (Google Maps)
The Outcasts allegedly ordered the Chosen Few to hand over their vests. Gunfire erupted according to court documents, although it is unclear the extent of the damage or injuries. The Outcasts then brought an unidentified person to the hospital.
Prosecutors said the shooting put numerous bystanders in danger in a parking lot shared with McDonald's and Arby's restaurants, a gas station and other businesses.
The Outcast Georgia sign hangs outside the motorcycle club headquarters on East Boundary and Sand Bar Ferry Road in Augusta, Georgia, on Monday, May 15, 2023. A shooting at the intersection over the weekend left two dead and four injured. (Katie Goodale/USA Today Network/IMAGN)
Prosecutors described the Outcast and the Chosen Few gangs as "1-percenter" or "outlaw motorcycle gangs" – which the FBI says "are organizations whose members use their motorcycle clubs as conduits for criminal enterprises."
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The Southeast Georgia Chapter of the Outcast Motorcycle gang is suspected of running a criminal empire encompassing Bryan, Chatham, Crisp, Douglas, Glynn, Liberty, McIntosh and Richmond counties in Georgia; Colleton County in South Carolina -- and even reaching Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
Empty shell casings sit on the ground outside the Outcast motorcycle club headquarters on East Boundary and Sand Bar Ferry Road in Augusta, Georgia, on Monday, May 15, 2023. A shooting at the intersection over the weekend left two dead and four injured. (Katie Goodale/USA Today Network/IMAGN)
State, local and federal law enforcement took part in a 13-month investigation into the group, seizing $180,000 in cash, 71 weapons, two motorcycles and two cars – and leading to the May 31 indictment, prosecutors said.
"The goal is to not only deal a punishing blow to criminal gang activity in this region, but also to ultimately dismantle the gang itself," Richmond Hill Police Chief Mitch Shores said in a statement.
Prosecutors identified the suspects as Aiken, 46, the chapter president; Eddie "Stash" Latson, 43, the vice president; Lee "Trench" Mole, 58, the chapter secretary; Donovan "Sockit" Scott, 35, the sergeant-at-arms; Joseph "Axel" Leeks, 44, a captain; Labarron "Bootleg" Pollock, 48, a former vice president; Michael "Chop" Randolph, 43, the group's business manager; members Taurus Simmons, 42; Terrance Parker, 44; Marquis Jones, 34; Shron Gilbert, 51; Theron Singleton, 57; Jemar Mack, 34; and associates Demon Thompson, 45; Paul Gosden, 52 and Whitney Hooks, 36.
Grilling equipment sits outside the Outcast motorcycle club headquarters on East Boundary and Sand Bar Ferry Road in Augusta, Georgia, on Monday, May 15, 2023. A shooting at the intersection over the weekend left two dead and four injured. (Katie Goodale/USA Today Network/IMAGN)
Allegations against the group include 21 counts of violating Georgia's Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act, 11 counts of aggravated assault, seven counts of armed robbery and numerous conspiracy charges.
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The gang's Augusta chapter is suspected in a recent shooting there with a rival Daytona, Florida-based gang, Thugg Riders, that left two people dead and four injured.
The Richmond County Sheriff's Office identified the deceased victims there as 51-year-old Germayne Farrell, of Daytona, and 30-year-old Keith Coates, of Valdosta, Georgia. Four others who survived their injuries including three Thugg Riders and another Outcast member, according to the sheriff.
At least 12 people were arrested in that shootout.
The May 13 incident, according to Sheriff Richard Roundtree, is believed to have been retaliation for a prior altercation between the gangs in Florida.
"This was a targeted attack," he told reporters. "You're talking about traveling three, four hours to come to Augusta, armed, to engage in gun violence."
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