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members dispute that claim, saying they are simply bonded by brotherhood and a love of motorcycles. While police have said the group exists to commit crime and sell drugs. The group was formed in Houston in 1966 and has since grown to include chapters nationwide and in foreign countries. after undercover officers from the Harris County Organized Crime and Narcotics Task Force infiltrated the group. The Bandidos Motorcycle Club made local news when four members were arrested on felony drug charges. © Houston Chronicle Show More Show Lessġ2 of36 13 of36 - Detail photo of rings on the fingers of Bandidos Motorcycle Club National Secretary 'Bandido' Bill, who declined to give his last name. and Sammy Mares (president, Houston-Northwest Bandidos chapter) are led away from Houston's federal building following their arrests as part of a nationwide organized crime probe of the Bandidos motorcycle club by the FBI. Houston Chronicle Show More Show Less 11 of36 - Suspects (L-R, with restraints) Jimmy Glenn Faulk, Thomas Walter Eubanks, Jr.
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( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle ) Houston Chronicle Show More Show Lessĩ of36 10 of36 - Detail of patches on the jacket of Bandidos Motorcycle Club North Houston chapter Sgt. Marshal after an appearance in federal court, where he faced several charges related to his alleged activity with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club Wednesday, Jan. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle ) Houston Chronicle Show More Show Less 5 of36 Jeffrey Fay Pike, 60, of Conroe, the national president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, is escorted from the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse, 515 Rusk, after an appearance in federal court, where he faced several charges related to his alleged activity with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club shown Wednesday, Jan. Some Tweeters questioned whether the group had white supremacist ties after tattoos of the Schutzstaffel (or "the SS") emblem, that of Hitler's personal military unit, were spotted on the gang members.3 of36 4 of36 Jeffrey Fay Pike, 60, of Conroe, the national president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, is escorted from the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse, 515 Rusk, after an appearance in federal court, where he faced several charges related to his alleged activity with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club shown Wednesday, Jan. Obviously, this might change given Sunday's events. It might be due to its size, its relative newness, or its origins, but the Cossacks haven't garnered the same outlaw reputation in the media as the longstanding Bandidos. According to a Deseret News article from 1991, the first chapter of the 8-member biker gang called themselves the Cossacks, only had one bike, and aspired to be the “Hells Angels of the Soviet Union.” According to the gang members quoted at the time, there was ample coverage about biker gangs in the Soviet press at the time, and Hells Angel Sonny Barger, the founder of its notorious rough and tumble Oakland chapter, was seen as representing “true freedom.” The Cossacks' origins can be traced back to Russia. KTXS reported that Bandido President Jack Lewis and “Sergeant at Arms” Wesley Dale Mason each allegedly stabbed a separate Cossack gang member in the parking lot of the Logan's Road House in Abilene, Texas. Two members of the Bandidos, including the president of the Abilene chapter, were indicted back in March 2014 in connection with the stabbing of two Cossack gang members. But the exact reasons for the strife between the Bandidos and the Cossacks is unknown. The Cossacks are not a part of the “Big Four” motorcycle gangs which include the Bandidos, the Outlaws, the Pagans, and the Hells Angels. Unlike the Bandidos, which are currently the fastest growing motorcycle club in the country and rival the Hells Angels as far as membership size, less is known about the Cossacks. The deadly brawl killed at least nine and injured 18 bikers.
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At least five different biker gangs were involved in Sunday's shootout in Waco, Texas. The Cossacks and the Bandidos were the two of the biker gangs at the center of Sunday’s deadly shootout in Waco, Texas, according to the Waco Tribune-Herald.