Police out in force at Hells Angels Gathering

Police check Hells Angels' guest list
Provincial police were out in force east of London yesterday, stopping drivers and checking the identification of bikers outside a Hells Angels gathering on Gore Road.

Men standing at the gate of 6361 Gore Rd., where the gathering was being held, declined to comment on the situation.

A fence was curtained with black plastic.

"We are monitoring everyone who goes in and out of the area," said OPP Const. Chris Hunter. "It is a routine thing we do as part of our monitoring of biker gangs in the province.

"They know we are here and we know they are here."

The event itself was not illegal, police said, but the biker enforcement unit tries to keep close watch on the Hells Angels and other motorcycle gangs deemed to be criminal organizations.

Last month, the unit, with members from police forces across the province including London, seized a suspected Hells Angels clubhouse in east London.

Hunter declined to say what type of information police were seeking.

Officers at the checkpoint were seen recording the identification of bikers in Hells Angels colours who said they were going to the event.

A police trailer, more than a dozen cruisers and a prisoner van were parked along Gore Road and in areas around the gathering.

Police declined to say how many people were expected to attend.

The heavy police presence and the checkpoint confused one driver.

"At first I thought there was a murder or they were looking for someone," said the woman, who was stopped twice on her way to Thamesford about 11 a.m., and once on her way back to London around 2:30 p.m.


original article
London Free Press