Police Say Hells Angels Establishing Its First NW Clubhouse In Spokane

SPOKANE - The Hells Angels may be scouting out the Northwest. Law-enforcement officers say the outlaw motorcycle gang has established a clubhouse, the first in the region, in Spokane.

The "prospect chapter" here was formed last summer with sponsorship from the Hells Angels' San Fernando Valley (Calif.) chapter. It could become a full-fledged chapter by this summer, police say.

"The new club is about 10 to 12 strong right now," said Spokane police Officer Jeff Clark, who specializes in biker gangs. "That's about average size for an Angels' chapter."

Already, police say, members of the group have been arrested in drugs and weapons cases in Spokane and nearby Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Hells Angels also may have been involved in a brawl with a Spokane rival last month.

"Until now, the Angels have left the Northwest alone," said Deputy Ricky Fairbanks, who tracks biker groups for the Spokane County Sheriff's Department.

"They're just expanding, trying to control the entire West Coast," said Mike Vaughn, a biker expert with the Los Angeles Police Department.

The Hells Angels have 14 chapters in California, but none in Washington, Idaho or Oregon. There are Hells Angels in British Columbia and Alaska, and chapters are being formed in Las Vegas and in Shasta in Northern California.

Vaughn speculates some of the bikers are fleeing the pressure of large metropolitan areas.

"The farther out they get, the less scrutiny, and the more

comfortable they feel," he said.

The Los Angeles Police Department considers the Hells Angels "nontraditional organized crime," Vaughn said. Hells Angels elsewhere have been involved in a variety of criminal activities, including the sale of methamphetamine.

Police are circulating mug shots of men identified as members of the Spokane club and holding special training sessions for officers.

"We are trying to keep them from getting much of a foothold in this area," said Washington State Patrol Sgt. Brent Pfundheller of the Spokane Regional Drug Task Force.

"Historically, the Hells Angels have been involved in everything from drug trafficking to extortion, murders and assaults. There's no reason to think it will be any different here."