[size=55:1aip0j2r]Europol 30 July 2010
Outlaw motorcycle gang activity spreads to South–East Europe
As part of its responsibility to monitor developments in the threat from organised crime and terrorism in Europe, Europol has recently identified a major expansion in the activity of the Hells Angels and other outlaw motorcycle gangs. Europol is leading a major project in this area to help law enforcement agencies in the EU to combat this threat.
Outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMCGs) such as Bandidos and Hells Angels are already present throughout the European Union (EU). Recently the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) has significantly expanded its presence into Eastern Europe. Over the last couple of years they have spearheaded an extremely rapid drive into South–East Europe, particularly in Turkey and Albania.
Those motorcycle riders who do not abide by the law refer to themselves as ‘one percenters’ (1%er). Most of these OMCG members adopt a multi-crime approach that includes racketeering and extortion, violent crimes such as homicide, grievous bodily harm and organised robbery, fraud and financial crime, as well as trafficking of firearms and explosives, trafficking of human beings for sexual exploitation and drug trafficking.
Hells Angel’s members have been involved in the full range of organised crime activities, in particular, the production and distribution of cannabis and methamphetamine, and they have a solid position in the cocaine market.
New alliances between outlaw motorcycle gangs mean that they get the capability and capacity (i.e. infrastructure, relationships, resources and experience) to manage drugs trafficking via South–East Europe using the ‘Balkan Route’, which sees Turkey as an anchor point and major staging area for onward transportation of hard drugs.
In establishing its territorial influence in South–East Europe, Hells Angels have built close relationships with local OMCGs in Albania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and they have established their own presence in Turkey. Additionally, a large number of former German Bandidos Motorcycle Club members of Turkish origin recently defected to the Hells Angels MC Turkey chapter.
In the race to secure the opportunities provided by the South–East European markets, a turf war is a significant threat, based on previous increases in violence observed between rival gang members in other parts of Europe. The establishment of other international outlaw motorcycle gangs in South–East Europe, where Hells Angels are already present, may also lead to violent disputes for superiority.
One of the most serious threats associated with outlaw motorcycle gangs is their tendency to use extreme violence, which is aggravated by their willingness to use firearms and other higher calibre weapons. Locally, they exploit and invest in legitimate business structures for a wide variety of purposes including money laundering and fraud, or as fronts for other illegal activities.
Authorities in South–East Europe face an unfamiliar threat and Hells Angels are already using diverse strategies in their attempts to build close relationships with influential people and authorities in the region, as well as systematically trying to build a favourable public image through newspaper articles and TV appearances.
The lack of knowledge concerning the precise number of local outlaw motorcycle gangs, and the nature of their relationships with other gangs, represents an important intelligence gap that needs to be addressed by national authorities. Over 60 local motorcycle clubs, many of which display links to international outlaw motorcycle gangs, have been detected across South–East Europe and an effort to fill this intelligence gap would enable national law enforcement agencies to isolate specific OMCGs from those clubs that are comprised solely of motorcycle enthusiasts.
National competent authorities throughout Europe, particularly in the North West, are in a position to directly assist in response to this threat, for instance, by monitoring the travel movements of OMCG members to South–East Europe and informing local authorities.
This rise in the growth of outlaw motorcycle gangs calls for an integrated approach to further enhance intelligence on the spread of the gangs’ criminal activities. Authorities in South–East Europe can draw on a considerable range of experience and expertise at national and European levels to identify and disrupt these criminal networks. Europol offers support to deal with this European–wide threat through its analytical and criminal intelligence sharing capabilities. To facilitate such cooperation and share best practices on recognising and disrupting the activities of gangs, the allocation of a Single Point of Contact within national law enforcement authorities in South–East Europe would be a first, important step.
An integrated approach to enhance law enforcement cooperation, as well as the coordinated sharing and centralised analysis of intelligence at an EU level, will help to bridge gaps in intelligence and ultimately disrupt the illegal activities of these gangs.
Fri Jul 30, 2010 6:05 pm
