Former Hell's Angels Member Sues FX Over 'Sons of Anarchy' | TheWrap.com

Former Hell's Angels Member Sues FX Over 'Sons of Anarchy' TheWrap.com: "former New York City chapter head of the Hell's Angels claims FX stole his idea and screwed him out of millions of dollars from its hit show 'Sons of Anarchy.'
TMZ has obtained a lawsuit filed by Chuck Zito -- in which the bike gang member-turned-actor claims he developed an idea for a show about an 'outlaw motorcycle club' back in 1998 and pitched it to FX in 2004.
Zito claims he entered into an 'implied-in-fact contract' with FX that guaranteed if it used his idea for a TV show, Zito would be 'reasonably compensated and afforded appropriate screen credits.' He says FX ultimately passed."

Read more »

indicted 27 members of a motorcycle gang, including 10 from North Carolina, on charges ranging from attempted murder to drug distribution

federal grand jury on Tuesday indicted 27 members of a motorcycle gang, including 10 from North Carolina, on charges ranging from attempted murder to drug distribution. One by one, federal agents brought members of the Outlaws to the federal courthouse in Charlotte.

Read more »

Car bomb target was ‘reformed’ gang member

Car bomb target was ‘reformed’ gang member: "car bomb that exploded in Århus early yesterday morning was aimed at a former Hells Angels member who had reportedly been trying to step away from his criminal past.
The bomb, which damaged several other cars and shattered neighbourhood windows, was detonated when 42-year-old Bo Steffensen put his vehicle into reverse after leaving the halfway house where he was living. Steffensen suffered only minor cuts from the blast, which destroyed the back half of his car.
Police say Steffensen is a former Hells Angels member who was sentenced to 13 years in prison in 2005 in the country’s largest drug trafficking case ever. During the trial, Steffensen testified against other Hells Angels members.
Investigators believe his gang connection is a probable motive for the bombing, but added they are not ruling out other possibilities.
Steffensen, who is married and has three children, was living in the halfway house with 15 other adult convicts and 10 young offenders after being paroled three months ago. He was working to get his life back on track, according halfway house superintendent Hans Jørgen Tholstrup."

Read more »

Suspected Biker Gang Leader Held Without Bail - Portland News Story - WMTW Portland

Suspected Biker Gang Leader Held Without Bail - Portland News Story - WMTW Portland: "Forty-one-year-old Thomas 'Taz' Benvie, president of the Maine chapter of the Outlaws, appeared in federal court in Portland Thursday afternoon. Benvie was arrested at his home on Tuesday on charges of racketeering. He was one of more than two dozen members of the Outlaws indicted last week by a federal grand jury in Virginia.
Benvie was arrested on the same day that agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms went to Old Orchard Beach to arrest Thomas 'Tomcat' Mayne, 59. As agents arrived at Mayne's house at 5 Sandy Circle, shots were fired and Mayne was killed in a shootout.
According to the indictment, Mayne was one of two Outlaws members who shot a member of the Hells Angels last October in Canaan. Authorities said the national president of the Outlaws ordered the Canaan shooting in retaliation of an attack on Outlaws members by the Hells Angels in Connecticut."

Read more »

The Associated Press: Outlaw killed by ATF was suspect in Maine shooting

The Associated Press: Outlaw killed by ATF was suspect in Maine shooting: "motorcycle gang member shot dead by federal agents in Maine was one of two Outlaws accused of shooting a rival outside a Hell's Angel clubhouse last year.
Court documents indicate the October shooting in central Maine was payback for a clash between Outlaws and Hell's Angels in Connecticut. The victim was hospitalized but survived.
Authorities say after the shooting, Thomas 'Tomcat' Mayne and another Outlaw were rewarded with SS patches — Nazi-style lightning bolts signifying an Outlaw hit.
Mayne died Tuesday in a gunfight with agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
He was one of 27 Outlaws nationwide who were indicted in Richmond, Va."

Read more »

Ex-Hells Angel: 'Sons of Anarchy' Was MY Idea! | TMZ.com

Ex-Hells Angel: 'Sons of Anarchy' Was MY Idea! TMZ.com: "TMZ has obtained a lawsuit filed by Chuck Zito -- in which the bike gang member-turned-actor claims he developed an idea for a show about an 'outlaw motorcycle club' back in 1998 and pitched it to FX in 2004.

In the docs, Zito claims he entered into an 'implied-in-fact contract' with FX which guaranteed if they used his ideas for a TV show, Zito would be 'reasonably compensated and afforded appropriate screen credits.' Zito claims FX eventually passed on the project.

So when FX began developing 'Sons of Anarchy' in 2006 -- Zito was pissed ... claiming 'Sons' was 'substantially similar' to his motorcycle show idea.

Now, Zito claims FX is obligated to pay him more than $5,000,000 for breaking the 'implied-in-fact' contract.

FX had no comment on the lawsuit."

Read more »

two dozen leaders of the American Outlaws Association motorcycle gang have been arrested and one was killed in a shootout

 two dozen leaders of the American Outlaws Association motorcycle gang have been arrested and one was killed in a shootout during a wide-ranging roundup by federal authorities Tuesday.

A federal grand jury in Virginia has indicted 27 members of the gang on charges that included attempted murder, kidnapping and assault, according to court documents unsealed Tuesday. Outlaws National President Jack Rosga and 26 others are named in a 12-count indictment that also lists robbery, extortion, witness intimidation, drug dealing, illegal gambling and weapons violations.

One member of the motorcycle gang was killed in a shootout in Old Orchard, Maine, as authorities tried to execute an arrest warrant relating to the indictment, said Mike Campbell, spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Campbell said members of an ATF Special Response Team pulled up to a house in Old Orchard to arrest Thomas Mayne and Kenneth Chretien when shots were fired at them from the house. ATF agents returned fire, killing one person, Campbell said.

Authorities did not release the name of the victim, but said that Chretien was taken into custody.

Read more »

Outlaw bikie gang member missing

Outlaw bikie gang member missing: "Neil Green, 36, is sergeant-at-arms of the Nomads outlaw motorcycle chapter in Riverstone, in Sydney's northwest, police say.
Detectives believe he was last seen on the afternoon of April 16, when he and another man drove to a premises in Wiltona Place, Girraween, in the city's west.
Witnesses in the area at the time claim they heard a verbal argument and gunshots.
Mr Green has not been seen since, nor has he made contact with any family, friends or associates.
On May 6, police searched the premises and seized five firearms that are undergoing forensic analysis.
One possibility being investigated is that Mr Green met with foul play."

Read more »

Ex-bikie 'sorry' about fatal brawl

Ex-bikie 'sorry' about fatal brawl: "Anthony Zervas lay dying in the Sydney domestic airport terminal, four Comanchero bikies jumped in a taxi back to the home of their boss's mum.
It was there that one of them, Christian Menzies, allegedly said he had killed Anthony Zervas, according to a church-going former bikie known only as AL who apologised in the District Court yesterday for his role in the events that Sunday afternoon in March last year.
The first fight had erupted at the terminal shortly after 1.30pm, outside Gate 5, when the Comanchero president, Mick Hawi, had hit the president of the rival Hells Angels, Derek Wainohu. This developed into a two-minute ''brawling mass'', according to a document tendered in court, where AL is being sentenced for his role in the event."

Read more »

7 more charged in probe of fight at Luigi's Pizza - Saturday, Jun. 5, 2010

7 more charged in probe of fight at Luigi's Pizza - Saturday, Jun. 5, 2010: "Seven men, five purportedly affiliated in some fashion with the Hells Angels motorcycle gang, were charged with riot yesterday in connection with the April 16 brawl at a Manchester pizzeria that ended with a slight gunshot wound to an innocent bystander, police said"

Read more »

Biker gang trial ends

Biker gang trial ends in 6 guilty verdicts freep.com Detroit Free Press: "convicted were: Aref (Steve) Nagi, 46; Gary (Junior) Ball Jr., 44; Leonard (Dad) Moore, 61; Joseph (Little Joe) Whiting, 56; Anthony (Mad Anthony) Clark, 52, and Michael (Cocoa) Cicchetti, 55, who recently suffered a heart attack during the trial.Former U.S. Attorney Terrence Berg unsealed a 35-count indictment against 74 members of the Highwaymen Motorcycle Club in May 2009. Initially, the case was brought in 2006 and expanded. Allegations included racketeering, attempted murder and drug trafficking."

Read more »

Biker gang trial ends in 6 guilty verdicts | freep.com | Detroit Free Press

Biker gang trial ends in 6 guilty verdicts freep.com Detroit Free Press: "six members of the Highwaymen Motorcycle Club were convicted Thursday of racketeering conspiracy charges in federal court in Detroit and face up to life in prison."

Read more »