Seven Hells Angels Members Arrested on Violent Charges in Bakersfield
Authorities have arrested an entire chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in Bakersfield, California, on a variety of violent charges, according to the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Six members of the club were detained on Tuesday, with a seventh already in custody facing charges.
Five of the arrested individuals are active members of the Bakersfield Hells Angels chapter, while the remaining two are affiliated with the Sons of Hell Motorcycle Club, a subgroup that allegedly takes orders from the Hells Angels. The charges against the seven men include kidnapping, robbery, assault with a firearm, and elder abuse. Further details about the incidents that led to the arrests have not been released by officials.
In a coordinated operation, 150 officers executed eight search warrants in connection with the arrests. Authorities seized firearms, ammunition, high-capacity magazines, and gang-related paraphernalia during the raids.
The members arrested from the Bakersfield chapter include Ricardo Alvarez, Armando Villasenor, Joseph Soto Sr., Joseph Soto Jr., and Joshua Zavala. The two individuals affiliated with the Sons of Hell Motorcycle Club, Joshua Vaughn and John Seeger, have also been charged. Vaughn was already in jail on separate charges at the time of his arrest.
The investigation is ongoing, and the charges will be referred to the Kern County District Attorney’s Office for further action.
The Hells Angels, founded more than 70 years ago in California, have been involved in various criminal activities, including drug and firearm trafficking. In recent years, federal authorities have targeted the club for its involvement in organized crime.
Last year, the San Diego County District Attorney’s office charged 17 individuals, including several Hells Angels members, for their role in an attack on three Black men at Ocean Beach. Prosecutors allege that the victims were racially targeted, with one victim stabbed by a Hells Angels leader and the others assaulted. A grand jury indicted 14 of the 17 individuals for assault, with 11 of them facing hate crime charges. The leader of the group was charged with attempted murder.
Eight of the accused have pleaded guilty, and the remaining individuals, including the leader, are scheduled to stand trial in August.
