The Nordic Biker War was a gang war that began in January 1994 and continued until September 1997 in parts of Scandinavia and Finland, involving the
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is a worldwide outlaw motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporatio ...
and
Bandidos
The Bandidos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Bandido Nation, is an outlaw motorcycle club with a worldwide membership. Formed in San Leon, Texas in 1966, the Bandidos MC is estimated to have between 2,000 and 2,500 members and 303 chapters, l ...
outlaw motorcycle clubs. The conflict is also known as the Great Nordic Biker War or Second Biker War ( da, anden rockerkrig) to distinguish it from the earlier Copenhagen Biker War, which took place between 1983 and 1985.Scandinavian approaches to outlaw motorcycle gangs Synnøve Økland Jahnsen,
Australian Institute of Criminology
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and criminal justice. The Institute seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research ...
(April 2018)Rockere – historisk baggrund Carsten Fenger-Grøn and Malene Grøndahl, faktalink.dk (2002)
The conflict arose from disputes over territory and organized crime
rackets
Racket may refer to:
* Racket (crime), a systematised element of organized crime
** Protection racket, a scheme whereby a group provides protection to businesses or other groups through violence outside the sanction of the law
* Racket (sports equ ...
, as well as personal feuds within the biker subculture. Specifically, the members of both groups sought a monopoly on the right to engage in crime in certain geographical areas. The war resulted in the killings of nine gang members, with shootings and bombings totalling another 74 attempted murders. The bikers utilized car bombs, machine guns, hand grenades, anti-tank missiles and small arms during their gang war, and assassination attempts were even made inside prisons.'Blondie' med i sin tredje krig Jan Søgaard, ''
Berlingske
''Berlingske'', previously known as ''Berlingske Tidende'' (, ''Berling's Times''), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark. First published on 3 January 1749,
''Berlingske'' ...
'' (29 October 2009) The majority of the hostilities took place in or around
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
in Denmark,
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
in Finland,
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
in Norway, and
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...
in Sweden.
The biker war was also costly for the police, who struggled to put an end to the murders. In overtime for police officers alone, the cost was set at around 50–75 million kroner. On 15 October 1996, a bill, known as the '' Rockerloven'' ("Rocker Act") in the media, was passed in the
Folketing
The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands ...
(Danish Parliament) which allows the police to evict motorcycle gangs from their headquarters. As a result of the 1996–1997 period of the conflict alone, 138 people were sentenced to a total of 240 years in prison.Fængslerne frygter en ny rockerkrig Jakob Stig Jørgensen, ''
Politiken
''Politiken'' is a leading Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1884 and played a role in the formation of the Danish Social Liberal Party. Since 1970 it has been independe ...
'' (20 September 2012) Several of those convicted were given
life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
for murder and attempted murder.Politichef forsvarer sig mod ros fra advokat Niels Rohleder, ''
Dagbladet Information
''Information'' (), full name: ''Dagbladet Information'' (), is a Danish newspaper published Monday through Saturday.
History and profile
''Dagbladet Information'' was established and published by the Danish resistance movement in 1943 during ...
'' (31 August 1999) Specific wings for motorcycle gang members were created at
Vridsløselille Prison
Vridsløselille Prison (Danish: Vridsløselille Fængsel) is a former state prison located in Albertslund in the western suburbs of Copenhagen in Denmark. It was operated as a state prison from its opening in 1859 to January 2016 and then served ...
and Horsens State Prison.Dømte rockere skal samles i københavnske fængsler Carsten Ellegaard, ''
Jyllands-Posten
''Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten'' (; English: ''The Morning Newspaper "The Jutland Post"''), commonly shortened to ''Jyllands-Posten'' or ''JP'', is a Danish daily broadsheet newspaper. It is based in Aarhus C, Jutland, and with a weekday circulat ...
'' (13 November 2002) Significant improvements were also made to the security of military weapons depots as a result of the Nordic Biker War after several burglaries.
The conflict effectively came to an end in the summer of 1997 when the two sides reached a peace agreement, with the well-known defence lawyer Thorkild Høyer as mediator. On 25 September 1997, Bent Svane Nielsen of the Hells Angels and then-Bandidos president
Jim Tinndahn
Jan Leif Tinndahn (born 27 January 1961), also known as "Big Jim" and "''Solkongen''" ("Sun King"), is a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Europe between 1994 and 2012.
Early life
The ...
announced during a press conference that the rival clubs had ended their war. Nielsen stated "We cannot give guarantees that there will be no more incidents, but we can actively intervene and ensure that those who defy the cooperation agreement are excluded from our biker culture."
Background
The Nordic outlaw biker culture emerged in Sweden with the establishment of numerous motorcycle clubs (MCs) in the late 1960s and early 1970s.Organizing on two wheels: uncovering the organizational patterns of Hells Angels MC in Sweden Amir Rostami and Hernan Mondani,
Springer Science+Business Media
Springer Science+Business Media, commonly known as Springer, is a German multinational publishing company of books, e-books and peer-reviewed journals in science, humanities, technical and medical (STM) publishing.
Originally founded in 1842 in ...
(24 May 2017) Motorcycle groups inspired by the British rocker subculture then began in Denmark in the 1970s. Beginning around 1980, Danish clubs became increasingly influenced by developments in the United States and began to refer to themselves as "bikers", the American term for motorcycle enthusiasts. The term "rocker" is still commonly used by the police and media in Denmark to refer to the outlaw motorcycle subculture. As the biker milieu expanded in Sweden and Denmark, violent conflicts arose between motorcycle clubs and the authorities began to take an interest in the clubs while gang wars proliferated. Outlaw motorcycle clubs then began to appear in Finland in the late 1980s, during which time there was little distinction between club-affiliated bikers and independent recreational motorcyclists. Motorcycle gang violence did not occur in the country until the early 1990s. Inter-gang violence escalated in the
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...
as motorcycle clubs became increasingly more involved in
organized crime
Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...
during the 1980s and 1990s, resulting in the arrival of larger international clubs. Biker gangs in the region previously consisted of locally bounded single chapters which later merged ("patched over") into the
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is a worldwide outlaw motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporatio ...
(HAMC) and the
Bandidos
The Bandidos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Bandido Nation, is an outlaw motorcycle club with a worldwide membership. Formed in San Leon, Texas in 1966, the Bandidos MC is estimated to have between 2,000 and 2,500 members and 303 chapters, l ...
as they sought protection in more powerful clubs. The Hells Angels arrived in 1980 and gradually established dominance over the Scandinavian biker scene, before smaller clubs banded together and began forming Bandidos chapters in 1993 in order to resist forced amalgamation by the HAMC.
The first Hells Angels chapter in Scandinavia was founded in Denmark on 30 December 1980 when Unionen MC from
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
– a union of four local clubs, dating from 1977 – was patched over.
Bullshit Motorcycle Club
Bullshit Motorcycle Club, most commonly shortened to Bullshit MC, was a Danish outlaw motorcycle gang and organized criminal group active during the 1980s. They were best known for engaging in a violent turf war against the rivaling Hells Angels ...
, a merger of two clubs opposed to the HAMC's dominance, settled in Copenhagen's Christiania and took control of the hashish trade in the area. Bullshit and the Hells Angels engaged in a conflict, that came to be known as the First Biker War or Copenhagen Biker War, between September 1983 and December 1985, resulting in the murder of eight Bullshit members (including three presidents), one Hells Angels member, and two innocent people. In addition, Bullshit MC members were also prime suspects for the murder of two non-bikers during the war. When the police visited the former clubhouse of Bullshit in 1986, they also found the corpse of a man beneath the clubhouse floor. The first war was limited to Copenhagen alone, unlike the second, and the number of deaths during the Copenhagen war met or exceeded the number of deaths in the following war. Unlike the second war, the first had a clear winner and no "peace treaty" was required. Bullshit's members were younger and less organized than those in the Hells Angels, and they disbanded in 1988.
Expansion
The Hells Angels subsequently expanded into Norway, opening a chapter in
Trondheim
Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
on 1 August 1992 following a "patch over" of the Rowdies biker gang. The Rowdies spent close to ten years as a Hells Angels
support club
An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, ...
and were eventually "patched over" two weeks after carrying out a July 1992 knife and chain attack on a rival club, which led to the hospitalization of several of its members. The
Malmö
Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...
club Dirty Dräggels then became Sweden's first Hells Angels chapter on 27 February 1993. They were sponsored for membership by the Danish Hells Angels after vanquishing two other local clubs for the right to wear the Angels' "
colors
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...
". In Finland, the Overkill gang of
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
were made a HAMC "hangaround" club in 1992 via an association with the Hells Angels of Denmark. Overkill became involved in a struggle with another local motorcycle gang, the Iron Hog biker club, for the Hells Angels' approval. On 9 February 1993, several Iron Hog members including the club's president was severely beaten by Overkill bikers at a restaurant in
Järvenpää
Järvenpää (; sv, Träskända) is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located on the Helsinki–Riihimäki railway track in Uusimaa region, some north of Helsinki. Neighbouring municipalities are Tuusula, Sipoo and Mäntsälä. People ...
, and the club subsequently withdrew.Jengiläisten riidat toivat Bandidosin Suomeen 1990-luvulla Jarkko Sipilä,
MTV3
MTV3 ( fi, MTV Kolme, sv, MTV Tre) is a Finnish commercial television station. It had the biggest audience share of all Finnish TV channels until Yle TV1 (from Yle) took the lead. The letters MTV stand for Mainos-TV (literally "Advertisement ...
(12 May 2015) The following day, Overkill member Riko Roimu told Finnish television: "We are an official Hells Angels hangaround club and I'm fucking proud of it". Police then carried out a high-profile raid, using a
Patria Pasi
The Patria Pasi (earlier known as the Sisu Pasi) is a Finnish-made six-wheeled armoured personnel carrier (APC) originally designed for Finnish Defence Forces. The first variant was produced in 1983 and serial production began in 1984. It was des ...
Tapulikaupunki
Tapulikaupunki (Finnish), Stapelstaden (Swedish) is a northern neighborhood of Helsinki, Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land bord ...
, Helsinki on 3 March 1993, arresting five people.
The Bandidos were established on the European continent via a chapter in
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
, France, on 20 September 1989. After violent encounters between the French Bandidos and Hells Angels, American executives from both clubs met in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
in the late summer of 1993 and signed a non-aggression pact in order to avoid police and government countermeasures that could prevent their expansion. The Undertakers MC, a club in
North Zealand
North Zealand, also North Sealand ( da, Nordsjælland), refers to the northern part of the Danish island of Zealand which is not clearly defined but generally covers the area north of Copenhagen. The Danish tourist authorities have recently in ...
formerly on good terms with the Hells Angels before disputes led to a strain in relations, applied for membership in the Bandidos from the club's leadership in the United States and France in 1992. After serving as prospective members for a period of time, the Undertakers were patched over by the Bandidos on 17 December 1993. The Hells Angels sanctioned the Bandidos' takeover of the Undertakers on the condition that they confine themselves to just two chapters, in Stenløse and
Hørsholm
Hørsholm () is an urban area on the Øresund coast approximately north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It covers most of Hørsholm Municipality and straddles the borders neighbouring Fredensborg Municipality and Rudersdal Municipality.
Hørsholm prope ...
. Upon their foundation, the Danish Bandidos attracted several new members, including former members of Bullshit and individuals who had either been expelled from the Hells Angels or had left the club in protest over the organizational and leadership philosophy. Simultaneously, a conflict was brewing between the Hells Angels and the Mordids MC across the
Øresund
Øresund or Öresund (, ; da, Øresund ; sv, Öresund ), commonly known in English as the Sound, is a strait which forms the Danish–Swedish border, separating Zealand (Denmark) from Scania (Sweden). The strait has a length of ; its width v ...
strait in southern Sweden. The
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...
-based Morbids were offered a path to Hells Angels membership on the condition that they merge with the Rebels, a rival club with whom they had previously clashed. The Morbids rejected the offer and instead aligned with the Danish Bandidos for support. The Bandidos and their leader,
Jim Tinndahn
Jan Leif Tinndahn (born 27 January 1961), also known as "Big Jim" and "''Solkongen''" ("Sun King"), is a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Europe between 1994 and 2012.
Early life
The ...
, had no intention of adhering to what they considered Hells Angels-imposed protocol concerning their recruitment and development, and they made the Morbids a probationary Bandidos chapter on 22 January 1994.
Police and prosecutors described the conflict that followed as a drug trade war between the Hells Angels and the Bandidos, the two most powerful outlaw biker gangs in Scandinavia. Members of both clubs were involved in drug, prostitution, extortion and arms smuggling rings, and bikers controlled the distribution of amphetamine, cocaine, hashish and MDMA in some areas.Bikers Feud in Land of the Vikings Dean E. Murphy, ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' (10 June 1996) Amphetamine was sourced from Poland and hash from Morocco.Biker war revving up in Denmark Ray Moseley, ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' (3 July 1997) Canadian researcher Yves Lavigne stated that one of the reasons for the intensified biker activity in the Nordic region is the proximity to the
Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
, where drugs could be exchanged for weapons from the former Soviet Union.Forbrydelsens fred David Rehling, ''
Dagbladet Information
''Information'' (), full name: ''Dagbladet Information'' (), is a Danish newspaper published Monday through Saturday.
History and profile
''Dagbladet Information'' was established and published by the Danish resistance movement in 1943 during ...
'' (27 September 1997) The Bandidos' growth in the drug trade brought them into conflict with Hells Angels-sponsored dealers. However, the criminologist Joi Bay criticised this assumption, saying that the police tactics were ineffective because they were based on the incorrect premise that the motivation of the bikers was profit, while in fact they were driven by values such as honor, style, respect, and brotherhood, and any drug crimes were incidental. In retrospective interviews in 2014, involved bikers rejected the drug-trade dispute interpretation and said the war started from a purely personal confrontation when the small Morbids club, with only six members, refused to capitulate to the larger Hells Angels. Most of the violence of the conflict took place in the Copenhagen area. The Danish chapters of the HAMC and Bandidos were seen as the driving forces behind the biker war, and were also responsible for its resolution.
Membership and weaponry
While there were just two Bandidos chapters in Denmark and a single Hells Angels chapter in Sweden when the war commenced in 1994, each country was home to approximately fifteen independent motorcycle gangs, most of which were aligned with the Hells Angels. The recruitment pool for the clubs in Scandinavia consisted of over a thousand outlaw bikers. By 1997, the Bandidos' presence in the Nordic countries consisted of approximately 130 members from at least seven chapters, while the Hells Angels' contingent was made up of around 290 members in total from fifteen chapters, with 85 in Sweden, 110 in Denmark, 70 in Norway and 25 in Finland. Denmark at the time was home to the highest concentration of motorcycle gang members in Europe and possibly the world, a phenomenon police and sociologists have been unable to explain.
Between 1994 and 1997, there were at least 36 break-ins at
Danish Home Guard
The Danish Home Guard ( da, Hjemmeværnet) (HJV) is the fourth service of the Danish military. It was formerly concerned only with the defence of Danish territory, but since 2008, it has also supported the Danish military efforts in Afghanistan a ...
installations; at least 16
Bofors
AB Bofors ( , , ) is a former Swedish arms manufacturer which today is part of the British arms concern BAE Systems. The name has been associated with the iron industry and artillery manufacturing for more than 350 years.
History
Located in ...
anti-tank missiles, 10 machine guns, around 300 handguns, 67 fully automatic rifles, 205 rifles of various calibres, hundreds of hand grenades and land mines, and 17 kilograms of explosives plus detonators were stolen. Police believe the Bandidos or their support clubs were responsible for the majority of the thefts. The Danish and Swedish militaries subsequently tightened security. The Hells Angels obtained Russian- and Yugoslavian-made rocket launchers as well as surplus machine guns and rifles from former
Eastern Bloc
The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...
countries. The conflict saw the use of the Swedish
AT4
The AT4 is a Swedish unguided, man-portable, disposable, shoulder-fired recoilless anti-tank weapon built by Saab Bofors Dynamics (previously Bofors Anti-Armour Systems and before that FFV Ordance). The AT4 is not considered a rocket launch ...
eight times, and the Russian
RPG-22
The Soviet RPG-22 ''Netto'' is a one-shot disposable anti-tank rocket launcher first deployed in 1985, based on the RPG-18 rocket launcher, but firing a larger 72.5 mm fin stabilised projectile. The weapon fires an unguided projectile, ca ...
three times. Hand grenades were used four times and a booby trap once.
Car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
s were utilized three times, while other types of explosives were also used on three occasions. The bombs used scaled in size between one and five kilograms. Over twenty
drive-by shooting
A drive-by shooting is a type of assault that usually involves the perpetrator(s) firing a weapon from within a motor vehicle and then fleeing. Drive-by shootings allow the perpetrator(s) to quickly strike their target and flee the scene before ...
s also occurred.
The conflict
1994–1995: The beginnings of the biker war
Shortly after the Morbids MC in
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...
became a probationary Bandidos chapter on 22 January 1994, members of the Hells Angels prospect club Rebels MC strafed the club's headquarters with gunfire. The Rebels later became a HAMC chapter in
Hasslarp
Hasslarp is a locality situated in Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of S ...
, based out of a rural compound less than two miles away from the Morbids' dairy farm-turned-clubhouse in Helsingborg. The clubhouse was targeted again the following week when, on 26 January 1994,
Malmö
Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...
Hells Angels chapter president
Thomas Möller
Thomas Möller (born 7 June 1964) is a former president of the Hells Angels in Sweden.
Möller was one of the founders of the car-and-bike club ''Dirty Dräggels'' in Malmö. This club became a hangaround chapter of Hells Angels Denmark in 1990, ...
fired a high-caliber submachine gun from the roof of a van, resulting in a Morbids member losing a finger. On 13 February 1994, fifteen Danish Bandidos members were ambushed by Hells Angels associates at a Helsingborg nightclub, resulting in thirteen gunshots being fired and Joakim Boman, a member of the Hells Angels support club Rednecks MC, being shot dead. Three others, including Hells Angels hangaround Johnny Larsen and a Bandidos member, were wounded.Major Incidents in Hells Angels-Bandidos Feud in Nordic Countries
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
(31 July 1996) Boman's murder has never been solved. On 21 February 1994, the Morbids retaliated by attacking the Rebels' clubhouse with a Carl Gustaf 8.4 cm recoilless rifle, damaging the premises' garage and swimming pool but resulting in no injuries.
The Hells Angels' leadership in the United States became concerned about the Bandidos' expansion, but also wished to avoid a war and the associated legal repercussions. The HAMC mother chapter in
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
summoned Thomas Möller to a meeting where the club's leader
Sonny Barger
Ralph Hubert "Sonny" Barger, Jr. (October 8, 1938 – June 29, 2022) was an American outlaw biker, author and actor who was a founding member of the Oakland, California chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in 1957. After forming the O ...
declared that, while the Paris pact marked Sweden as Hells Angels territory, the agreement was one of non-aggression. The Oakland chapter then met with senior Bandidos members in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
and reaffirmed their claim over the country. Bandidos leaders in the U.S. were unable to control their probate chapter in Helsingborg, however, as the club's European president
Jim Tinndahn
Jan Leif Tinndahn (born 27 January 1961), also known as "Big Jim" and "''Solkongen''" ("Sun King"), is a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Europe between 1994 and 2012.
Early life
The ...
continued to support the Morbids' retaliation against the Angels. A delegation of Bandidos from Texas met with the Hells Angels chapters in Malmö and
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
in an effort to resolve the dispute but diplomacy proved futile. A series of shootings in Helsingborg followed in the spring of 1994. The war quickly revealed the differences in the strategies of the opposing sides. The Bandidos' attacks were seemingly indiscriminate, whereas the Hells Angels' were more strategically aware, targeting their rivals' leadership.
In the weeks before Overkill MC in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
became a prospective Hells Angels chapter on 19 February 1994, club member Marko Hirsma was beaten at a Hells Angels party in Sweden where he was working as a bar tender. The reasons behind the beating are unknown. He resigned from the club and went on to found the Undertakers MC in
Vantaa
Vantaa (; sv, Vanda, ) is a city and Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is part of the inner core of the Greater Helsinki, Finnish Capital Region along with Helsinki, Espoo, and Kauniainen. With a population of (), Vantaa i ...
in August 1994. On 22 June 1994, Juha Nousiainen – president of the Barley MC, a HAMC support club in
Kellokoski
Kellokoski (; sv, Mariefors) is one of the three villages in the Finnish municipality of Tuusula. It is located north of the town of Järvenpää. Kellokoski has a population of 4,400.http://www.tuusula.fi/kellokoski/ Tuusula.fi Information about ...
– fatally shot Kari Korpi, president of the Klan MC, outside a restaurant in
Järvenpää
Järvenpää (; sv, Träskända) is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located on the Helsinki–Riihimäki railway track in Uusimaa region, some north of Helsinki. Neighbouring municipalities are Tuusula, Sipoo and Mäntsälä. People ...
. Nousiainen was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to nine years in prison on 22 September 1994.Moottori- pyöräjengin johtajalle 9 v vankeutta ''
Helsingin Sanomat
''Helsingin Sanomat'', abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of ...
'' (23 September 1994) While seemingly an isolated incident at the time, Korpi's killing has in retrospect been viewed in relation to the biker war.MC-kriget mellan Hells Angels och Bandidos Magnus Hellberg and Per Lindelöw, ''
Expressen
''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being '' Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue".
...
'' (6 December 2018) According to some sources, the Klan was a Bandidos affiliate.
The Customizers MC and Rabies MC in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
became hangaround clubs of the Hells Angels and Bandidos, respectively, in June 1994.
A Morbids member was shot in his car in central Helsingborg on 11 November 1994, and a brawl ensued between Bandidos and Hells Angels supporters at a nightclub two days later.Motorcykelgäng ställer polisen inför nya problem Brottsförebyggande rådet (May 1996) That same month, a Morbids member killed a fellow inmate at Helsingborg prison for providing information to the police. On 6 and 7 December 1994,
car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
s were discovered attached to the vehicles of two Rebels members. A shooting involving two cars occurred on a road outside
Kattarp
Kattarp is a locality
Locality may refer to:
* Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England
* Locality (linguistics)
* Locality (settlement)
* Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality i ...
on 8 January 1995 when members of the Rebels and Morbids both arrived at the same time to assist a woman whose vehicle had broken down. The Morbids were awarded Bandidos membership on 28 January 1995. On 5 February 1995, a Rebels member was assaulted by two men armed with iron pipes while visiting a restaurant in Helsingborg with his girlfriend.
The Undertakers were appointed a hangaround club by the Bandidos on 9 February 1995.
On 19 February 1995, a shooting involving members of the Customizers and Rabies took place in Oslo when Customizers fired at Rabies bikers riding in a car, leaving one man wounded. Customizers were made a Hells Angels prospect chapter and Rabies became a Bandidos probationary branch in October 1995.
The vice-president of the Hells Angels support club Cannonball MC was shot and wounded by an Undertakers member at a restaurant in Helsinki on 1 April 1995.
Jim Tinndahn transferred from the Bandidos' "Northland" chapter in Stenløse, Denmark to the Helsingborg chapter in June 1995.
On 17 July 1995, Bandidos Sweden president Michael "Joe" Ljunggren was shot dead with a rifle, likely a
Carl Gustaf m/45
The Kulsprutepistol m/45 (Kpist m/45), also known as the Carl Gustaf M/45 and the Swedish K SMG, is a 9×19mm Swedish submachine gun (SMG) designed by Gunnar Johansson, adopted in 1945 (hence the m/45 designation), and manufactured at the Carl ...
, while riding his motorcycle on the
European route E4
European route E4 passes from north to south through Sweden from the border with Finland, with a total length of . The Finnish part lies entirely within Tornio in northern Finland, and is only long. The Swedish part traverses most of Sweden ex ...
south of
Markaryd
Markaryd () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Markaryd Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden with 3,966 inhabitants in 2010.
International relations
Twin towns — Sister cities
Markaryd is Twin towns and sister cities, twinn ...
in
Småland
Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden.
Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized fo ...
, Sweden while returning from a meeting with the Undertakers in Helsinki. Ljunggren's murder remains a
cold case
A cold case is a crime, or a suspected crime, that has not yet been fully resolved and is not the subject of a current criminal investigation, but for which new information could emerge from new witness testimony, re-examined archives, new or re ...
.Olösta morden kring Hells Angels och Bandidos Jens Andersson, ''
Göteborgs-Tidningen
''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being ''Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue".
...
'' (17 September 2016) The Choppers MC in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
gained prospect status from the Hells Angels shortly after the killing, leading to a theory that the Choppers carried out the assassination of Ljunggren on orders from the HAMC. The Bandidos launched two attacks against the Hells Angels in retaliation. On 25 July 1995, two Undertakers members fired a
rocket-propelled grenade
A rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. Most RPGs can be carried by an individual soldier, and are frequently used as anti-tank weapons. These warheads are a ...
weapons depot at the Overkill clubhouse in northern Helsinki. The missile penetrated the building's walls but failed to explode on impact. An identical strike was carried out by the Helsingborg Bandidos against the Rebels' headquarters in Hasslarp on 31 July 1995, again resulting in no injuries. Dan Lynge, a Danish police officer who infiltrated the club, carried out surveillance on the compound with a Swedish Bandidos prospect in the days before the attack.
The Undertakers were upgraded to a Bandidos prospect chapter 19 August 1995 and moved to a new clubhouse in
Kamppi
Kamppi () is a neighbourhood in the centre of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The name originally referred to a small area known as the "Kamppi field" (see below), but according to the current official designation, "Kamppi" encompasses a much l ...
, Helsinki. The same month, Marko Hirsma and two other Undertakers members assaulted and stole the
colors
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...
of the former Overkill president. On 27 September 1995, Hirsma and another Undertakers biker were attacked by members of Cannonball and Overkill outside a courthouse in
Pasila
Pasila (; sv, Böle, ) is a part of Helsinki, Finland, that is both a central-northern neighbourhood and district, bordering the areas of Alppila to the south, the Central Park ( Keskuspuisto) to the west, and Vallila to the east.
Pasila is a ...
, Helsinki when they arrived to attend the trial of Kai Tapio Blom and Antti Tauno Tapani, two club members charged with the RPG attack on the Overkill headquarters. Four men with baseball bats destroyed an Overkill-owned
tattoo parlour
A tattoo artist (also tattooer or tattooist) is an individual who applies permanent decorative tattoos, often in an established business called a "tattoo shop", "tattoo studio" or "tattoo parlour". Tattoo artists usually learn their craft via an ...
in
Punavuori
Punavuori ( sv, Rödbergen) is a neighbourhood in the center of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The name Punavuori (English: Red mountain) refers to red cliffs located between Sepänkatu and Punavuorenkatu. They were still visible in the 19th ce ...
, Helsinki as reprisal on 11 October 1995. Blom and Tapani were convicted in October 1995 and sentenced to six years' and four-and-a-half years' imprisonment, respectively.
A prospective
Outlaws
An outlaw is a person living outside the law.
Outlaws or The Outlaws may also refer to:
Film and television Film
* ''The Outlaws'' (1950 film), an Italian crime film
* ''Outlaws'' (1985 film), a French film
* ''The Outlaws'' (2017 film), a Sou ...
chapter was founded in Oslo by Thore "Henki" Holm Hansen on 26 October 1995 and became a full-fledged chapter by the end of the year. Due to the clubs' positive relations in the U.S., the Norwegian Outlaws pledged support to the Bandidos in the escalating biker war. Gunshots were fired at the Outlaws' clubhouse on 18 November 1995, with four bullets going through the premises' windows and another four striking its brick walls.Her er politiets fiasko-liste ''
Dagbladet
''Dagbladet'' (lit.: ''The Daily Magazine'') is one of Norway's largest newspapers and is published in the tabloid format. It has 1,400,000 daily readers on mobile, web and paper. Traditionally ''Dagbladet'' is considered the main liberal newsp ...
'' (12 October 1998)
A Rebels member was wounded in the leg during a shootout between two vehicles on a motorway outside Helsingborg on 6 December 1995.
On 17 December 1995, two leading members of the Bronx '95 MC – a Bandidos hangaround club founded in
Trondheim
Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
earlier that year – were shot and wounded while riding in a car. Three Hells Angels members were charged with attempted murder, but were acquitted in December 1996. The incident effectively stopped the founding of a Bandidos chapter in Trondheim, a city that has since been seen as a Hells Angels stronghold.
The conflict reached Danish soil when two Hells Angels members were severely beaten by a gang of between five and ten Bandidos at the "Stardust" discotheque in
Strøget
Strøget () is a pedestrian, car free shopping area in Copenhagen, Denmark. This popular tourist attraction in the centre of town is one of the longest pedestrian shopping streets in Europe at 1.1 km. Located at the centre of the old city o ...
, Copenhagen on 26 December 1995. Another Hells Angel reportedly locked himself in a women's bathroom to escape the Bandidos.
1996: The conflict escalates
An explosive device was thrown at the headquarters of the Hells Angels hangaround club Screwdrivers MC in
Hamar
Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...
, Norway on 15 January 1996, and the Customizers' clubhouse in Oslo was struck with a petrol bomb on 18 January 1996.MC-kriget som skakade Norden Ulf Kristiansson, ''
Helsingborgs Dagblad
''Helsingborgs Dagblad'' (''HD'', lit. "Helsingborg's Daily Paper"), published in Helsingborg in Skåne is the largest (circ. 84.000) newspaper in Swedish outside the metropolitan districts of Malmö, Göteborg and Stockholm.
History and profi ...
'' (11 January 2014) On 26 January 1996, seven shots were fired at a car carrying several Outlaws members outside the Customizers' clubhouse in
Alnabru
Alnabru is a neighbourhood of north-eastern Oslo. It lies in the middle of the southern part of the Grorud valley (Groruddalen). The name – which means "Alna bridge" – comes from that of the Alna River, from which are also derived the names ...
, Oslo, leaving an Outlaws biker wounded in the arm. Thirteen people associated with the Customizers were charged in the case. A tattoo studio linked to the Hells Angels in Oslo was firebombed on 1 February 1996.
On 12 February 1996, two grenade attacks were carried out against Overkill in Helsinki; two people were badly injured when a restaurant in the
Tapanila
Tapanila ( sv, Mosabacka) is a neighbourhood in Malmi district, Helsinki. Tapanila has approximately 5474 inhabitants (2005).http://www.hel2.fi/tietokeskus/helsinki_alueittain_2005/503Malmi.pdf Information about Malmi and its subareas Tapanila has ...
neighborhood belonging to a club member was bombed, and motorcycle garage in the
Hernesaari
Hernesaari (; sv, Ärtholmen; until 2013 known as Munkkisaari / ''Munkholmen'') The grenade was thrown into a warehouse next door to the garage in error.
The Rebels became a full-fledged Hells Angels chapter on 27 February 1996. A hand grenade left by the car of a Hells Angels hangaround in Helsingborg two days later failed to explode.
Eight bikers were shot in four different Nordic countries in just over a week in early March 1996, resulting in two deaths. On 1 March 1996, an Undertakers member and prospect were shot after confronting Overkill bikers carrying out reconnaissance on their clubhouse. Club vice-president Jarkko Kokko died from his wounds on 17 March 1996, and the prospect survived.Missiles used to attack Hells Angels' clubhouses ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' (18 April 1996) As a result of the killing, Overkill were made the Hells Angels' Finnish chapter on 23 March 1996 and relocated to a new headquarters in
Nöykkiö
Nöykkiö (Finnish) or Nöykis (Swedish) is a district of Espoo, Finland. It was originally known only by its Swedish name ''Nöykis'', but the Finnish name "Nöykkiö" came into use in the 1940s.
See also
* Districts of Espoo
This is an alphab ...
,
Espoo
Espoo (, ; sv, Esbo) is a city and municipality in the region of Uusimaa in the Republic of Finland. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordering the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Nurmijärvi ...
. Two Hells Angels were convicted of Kokko's murder; Ilkka Ukkonen was sentenced to twelve-and-a-half years' imprisonment and Jussi Penttinen was given six years'.
A Bandidos prospect was seriously injured when Bandidos and Hells Angels in two cars engaged in a gunfight in central Helsingborg on 5 March 1996.
On 10 March 1996, the Hells Angels carried out a twin attack on Bandidos members at
Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup ( da, Københavns Lufthavn, Kastrup, ; ) is an international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark, Zealand, the Øresund Region, and southern Sweden including Scania. It is the second largest airport in the Nordic coun ...
and
Oslo Airport, Fornebu
Oslo Airport, Fornebu ( no, Oslo lufthavn, Fornebu), was the primary international airport serving Oslo and Eastern Norway from 1 June 1939 to 7 October 1998. It was then replaced by Oslo Airport, Gardermoen, and the area has since been redevelo ...
. Members of both clubs were attending events in Helsinki and found themselves on the same flights as they returned to their respective cities in Denmark and Norway, allowing the Hells Angels to formulate at ambush at both airports. At Copenhagen, two Bandidos members, a prospect and a hangaround were shot, resulting in the death of Uffe Lindenskov Larsen, president of the club's Dalby-based "Southside" chapter. Bandidos Norway president
Lars Harnes
Lars Harnes (born 1968) is a Norwegian outlaw biker and gangster who served as the national president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Norway.
Biography
Harnes was a founding member of the Norwegian branch of the Bandidos, which was established ...
was wounded in a shooting at Oslo. Six Danish Hells Angels members and associates were sentenced to a total of fifty-three years' imprisonment, and one was given a life sentence, for the Copenhagen attack, while Hells Angels Oslo chapter president Torkjell "''Rotta''" ("Rat") Alsaker was sentenced to three years' for the shooting at Fornebu airport. The airport shootings marked the beginning of the most violent phase of the Nordic Biker War.Toprocker er død: Han skød rocker-krigen i gang Jesper Vestergaard Larsen, '' B.T.'' (15 March 2014)
An unexploded hand grenade was discovered outside the clubhouse of the Bandidos' chapter in
Drammen
Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken (county), Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and village ...
, Norway on 21 March 1996.
In the early hours of 11 April 1996, the Hells Angels' compound in Hasslarp was targeted again, this time with two rockets. The clubhouse was severely damaged, but no-one was injured or killed.
The Danish Hells Angels "South" chapter clubhouse in Snoldelev was hit with an anti-tank missile shortly after midnight on 17 April 1996, destroying the upper floor of the structure but causing no injuries to the sixteen bikers inside. Four hours later, the headquarters of the HAMC support club Avengers MC in
Nørresundby
Nørresundby () is a city in Aalborg Municipality, north of Limfjorden, in Vendsyssel, in Denmark. The urban area has a population of 23,718 (1 January 2021). It is located just north of Aalborg, which lies south of Limfjorden. Statistically its ...
near
Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
was struck by another missile, causing minor damage as the projectile embedded itself in an interior wall without exploding. Four club members inside the clubhouse were unharmed. On 26 April 1996, imprisoned Bandidos "Southside" chapter vice-president Morten "''Træben''" ("Wooden Leg") Christiansen was left in critical condition with shrapnel wounds and burns when assailants threw a hand grenade into his cell after breaking into Horserød State Prison by cutting a large steel padlock securing the gate of the perimeter fence. Brian "''Bremse''" ("Brake") Paludan Jacobsen, a member of the Hells Angels' Copenhagen chapter, lost a leg and two associates were also wounded when two hand grenades were thrown into his home in
Brønshøj
Brønshøj, part of the municipality of Copenhagen, forms, together with Husum, the administrative city district (''bydel'') of Brønshøj-Husum, in Denmark.
History
The first mention of the village Brønshøj (Brunshoga), is in a letter dated Oc ...
from a passing vehicle on 7 May 1996. A stolen car used in the attack was discovered nearby.
Two female tourists were wounded when the car they were travelling in was fired upon while they were driving past the Customizers' Oslo clubhouse on 9 May 1996. One woman suffered minor wounds despite being shot in the head. Five people with ties to the Customizers were charged in the case.
An unexploded hand grenade was found outside Hells Angels' Espoo clubhouse on 12 May 1996. Another attack on the same location on 18 May 1996 also failed when two drunken men blew themselves up while attempting to throw hand grenades into the clubhouse. Both men were seriously wounded but survived. Undertakers president Marko Hirsma was sentenced to nine months in prison on 12 July 1996 after being convicted of orchestrating the attempted attack. The imprisonment of leading members of both the Undertakers and the Hells Angels saw the conflict decelerate in Finland. Violence continued in the prison system, however. The last public conflict of the Finnish biker war occurred on 29 June 1996 when Hells Angels and Undertakers clashed at a music festival in
Järvenpää
Järvenpää (; sv, Träskända) is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located on the Helsinki–Riihimäki railway track in Uusimaa region, some north of Helsinki. Neighbouring municipalities are Tuusula, Sipoo and Mäntsälä. People ...
. Members of the two clubs were then involved in a prison fight the following month.
Jim Verner, a Bandidos member from Klodskov near
Nykøbing Falster
Nykøbing Falster (; originally named Nykøbing) is a southern Danish city, seat of the Guldborgsund ''kommune''. It belongs to Region Sjælland. The city lies on Falster, connected by the Frederick IX Bridge over the Guldborgsund (''Guldb ...
in Denmark, discovered an explosive weighing half-a-kilogram attached to his van on 10 July 1996. He had been driving with the bomb underneath his vehicle for several hours, but it failed to explode due to a technical error.Rockere bag en stribe af bomber Jan Søgaard, '' B.T.'' (19 September 2003)
On 15 July 1996, four Bandidos members – two from the Drammen chapter, and two from the visiting Helsingborg chapter – were involved in a brawl with members of the Customizers in central Oslo. Later that evening, the four Bandidos were ambushed north of
Mjøndalen
Mjøndalen is a built up area in Drammen municipality in Viken county (formerly Buskerud county), Norway. It is situated south of the Drammenselva River opposite of Krokstadelva.
History
Mjøndalen has traditionally been a railway site most k ...
while on a motorcycle run. Helsingborg Bandidos prospect Jan "Face" Krogh Jensen died after being struck in the head with a bullet fired from a semi-automatic 7.65 caliber pistol. Police believe that Michael Garcia "Lerche" Olsen, to whom Krogh Jensen was serving as a bodyguard, was the intended target of the shooting. Olsen had been the president of the Copenhagen Hells Angels before being expelled. He then joined the Bandidos' Helsingborg chapter, becoming the club's European sergeant-at-arms. The Customizers became the Hells Angels' Oslo chapter later that year, and a club member was acquitted of premeditated murder in Krogh Jensen's death on 11 June 1998.Ble feil mann likvidert? Bjørnar Tommelstad, ''
Verdens Gang
''Verdens Gang'' ("The course of the world"), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, having declined from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. ''VG'' is n ...
'' (21 February 2015) The investigation into the killing was closed in 2000.Bandidos-drapet uoppklart.net On 19 July 1996, a car occupied by a Customizers member and a companion was targeted in a drive-by shooting in Oslo city centre, but no one was injured. Two people associated with the Bandidos were charged in the case, and police believe the shooting was carried out in retaliation for the killing of Jan Krogh Jensen.
A six-kilogram remote-controlled bomb hidden in a sports bag was placed in front of the Hells Angels' clubhouse in
Nørrebro
Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current Nørreport station ...
, Copenhagen but failed to explode when the radio-controlled trigger malfunctioned, potentially saving the lives of four bikers in the building as well as residents of the street, on 21 July 1996. The device was later detonated by a police
explosive ordnance disposal
Bomb disposal is an explosives engineering profession using the process by which hazardous explosive devices are rendered safe. ''Bomb disposal'' is an all-encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functions in the militar ...
unit. Jacob "Hip Hop" Andersen, a member of the Bandidos "Southside" chapter, was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison in 1997 after police technicians found his fingerprints on the sports bag.
Bandidos Sweden president Mikael "Mike" Svensson was shot in the leg while driving near the Hells Angels' headquarters in Hasslarp on 23 July 1996. His car was struck by several bullets. Svensson was discovered by police when he made his way to Helsingborg hospital for treatment.
On 25 July 1996, a team consisting of between two and four men infiltrated
Jyderup
Jyderup is an old town with a population of 4,325 in Holbæk Municipality (1 January 2022) in northwestern Zealand, Denmark. It is positioned roughly halfway between the larger cities of Kalundborg and Holbæk on the west and east, respectively, ...
State Prison and fired over twenty rounds from an automatic weapon into the cell of Jørn "Jønke" Nielsen, a senior member of the Hells Angels' Copenhagen chapter. Nielsen was wounded, shot twice in the abdomen and once in the arm.
A member of the Hells Angels was badly injured by gunfire while driving his car in Helsingborg on 4 August 1996.
On 5 August 1996, a civilian was wounded in a drive-by shooting in Greve, south of Copenhagen. Police believe the victim was mistaken for a Hells Angels member living in the same building. An associate of the Bandidos "Southside" chapter was wounded after being shot in his car as he left the chapter's clubhouse near
Haslev
Haslev, the largest town in Faxe municipality, lies in the southern part of Zealand, Denmark. About from Copenhagen, it has a population of 12,119 (1 January 2022).
on 14 August 1996.
A Hells Angels member was assaulted by an unknown intruder at a prison in Helsinki in August 1996.
A Bandidos member escaped being hit with gunfire when sixteen rounds were fired at his car in Stockholm on 27 August 1996. The following day, the vice-president of the Hells Angels' Helsingborg chapter survived being shot three times in the legs after he was attacked by three men at his garage.
On 2 September 1996, a Hells Angels member was shot and wounded by two men in a drive-by shooting as he closed a store in Aalborg owned by the HAMC's defense fund. A bomb planted on the car of another Aalborg Hells Angels member exploded after falling from the vehicle in a parking lot on 4 September 1996. The explosive detonated three meters away, damaging several cars but causing no injuries.
Twelve Hells Angels were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder after police raided three clubhouses in Hasslarp, Djurslöv and Malmö in southern Sweden on 10 September 1996.
A
car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
exploded outside a Hells Angels clubhouse situated in a residential neighborhood of
Roskilde
Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
, Denmark on 12 September 1996, causing extensive damage but no injuries.
Members of the Bandidos and Hells Angels are believed to have exchanged gunfire on a street in Helsingborg on 15 September 1996. A parked car suffered damage from bullets, and fifteen empty shells were found on the street. On the next day, the Helsingborg police found in a stolen car driven by a Hells Angels a machine-gun equipped with a silencer; a shotgun and two grenades.
The Hells Angels' clubhouse in Roskilde was attacked again in the early hours of 22 September 1996 when over two-hundred-and-fifty machine gun rounds were fired at the building from an adjacent football pitch. One Hells Angels member was wounded. The attack was the work of two snipers armed with a hunting rifle and a submachine gun.
A rocket was fired at the headquarters of the Hells Angels chapter in Hasslarp on 24 September 1996, and a similar operation was conducted against the same clubhouse four days later. A missile launcher was tied to the second story of an adjacent abandoned factory, and a string rigged to the trigger and attached to the Bandidos' getaway car pulled the cord. The rocket cut through electrical wires over a railway track before hitting the compound. Two hand grenades and a smoke grenade were also thrown into the building. Both attacks caused material damage but no injuries. At around 3:00 am on 3 October 1996, a powerful bomb caused a large explosion outside the HAMC clubhouse in Malmö, injuring four people and caused widespread damage to buildings within several hundred yards. Four bikers inside the building were not injured, and twenty families had to be evacuated from their homes. The following day, approximately a hundred people took part in a demonstration against the Hells Angels.
The Undertakers were patched over by the Bandidos on 5 October 1996, forming the club's "Downtown" chapter in Helsinki.
The biker war reached its crescendo on 6 October 1996 when the Copenhagen Hells Angels chapter's annual "Viking Party", held at the club's
Nørrebro
Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current Nørreport station ...
headquarters and attended by around one-hundred-and-fifty people, was attacked with a rocket-propelled grenade. At about 3: 05 am, a Bandidos prospect fired the grenade from the roof of an adjunct building, uisng a Carl Gustav rocket launcher. The missile exploded after penetrating the building's concrete walls, killing two people – Hells Angels prospect Louis Linde Nielsen and Janne Krohn, a single mother from the local area who accepted an invitation to the event – and wounding nineteen others, including HAMC Denmark national president Christian Sass Middelboe. Janne Krohn was the first non-combatant killed as a result of the conflict and the resulting public outrage caused the Danish government to introduce harsher anti-crime legislation in an effort to reduce motorcycle gang violence. A bill, known as the '' Rockerloven'' ("Rocker Act") by the media, was passed on 15 October 1996 to allow the police to evict bikers from their clubhouses.Højesteret godkender Rockerloven Niels Rohleder, ''
Dagbladet Information
''Information'' (), full name: ''Dagbladet Information'' (), is a Danish newspaper published Monday through Saturday.
History and profile
''Dagbladet Information'' was established and published by the Danish resistance movement in 1943 during ...
'' (17 August 1999) Bandidos member
Mickey Borgfjord Larsen
Mickey Borgfjord Larsen (7 March 1971 – 17 September 2003) was a Danish outlaw biker
An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers ...
was arrested on 24 October 1996 after his fingerprints were found on a machine gun thrown away by assailants in
Fælledparken
The park Fælledparken in Copenhagen, Denmark, was created 1906–1914 by landscape architect Edvard Glæsel in cooperation with the Copenhagen Municipality on the commons (Danish: ''fælled'') previously named ''Nørrefælled'' and ''Østerfæl ...
following the attack. He was charged with the attack on the clubhouse as well as the attempted murder of Jørn Nielsen at Jyderup prison, but was released after four months in custody due to a lack of evidence. Bandidos prospect Niels Poulsen was convicted of carrying out the attack on 13 March 1998 and sentenced to life imprisonment.Danish biker gets life for grenade attack
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
(13 March 1998)
A car bomb exploded outside the Hells Angels headquarters in Oslo on 30 October 1996. The explosion was so powerful that the clubhouse was moved to the foundation. No one was injured.
In November 1996, Marko Hirsma was attacked and beaten at
Helsinki Prison
The Helsinki Prison, also known as the Sörnäinen Prison (earlier known as Helsinki Central Prison) is a prison located in the Hermanninmäki district of Helsinki, Finland, opened in 1881. At the moment it is the only prison operating in Helsin ...
amidst a struggle for control of the prison drug trade fought between the Bandidos and a group of rival dealers.
A Bandido was wounded when two club members came under gunfire while trapped in a private yard in
Valby
Valby () is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is in the southwestern corner of Copenhagen Municipality, and has a mixture of different types of housing. This includes apartment blocks, terraced housing, areas with single ...
, Copenhagen on 5 December 1996. On 9 December 1996, a member of the Bandidos' Aalborg chapter survived being shot ten times as he waited in his car.
1997: Stalemate, ceasefire and peace agreement
Hells Angels member Kim Thrysøe Svendsen was shot and killed while driving in Vejgaard, Aalborg when three rounds were fired at his car on 10 January 1997. Approximately 500 Hells Angels from across Europe and the U.S. attended Svendsen's funeral. Several members of the Bandidos were charged with the killing, but due to lack of evidence, the prosecution had to give up the case, after which the suspects were released. Svendsen's murder is unsolved.Rockerkrigens uløste gåde: Find min søns morder Anton Rasmussen, ''
Ekstra Bladet
''Ekstra Bladet'' is a Danish tabloid newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen.About (in Danish) ''E ...
'' (20 February 2017)
On 13 January 1997, a member of the Bandidos' Helsingborg chapter was involved in a shootout outside his home with two people who fled by car. A member of the Stockholm Hells Angels visited a hospital with a bullet wound shortly afterwards.
Outlaws president Thore Holm Hansen and his French bodyguard Jean-Luc Verbert were shot by members of the Hells Angels support club Untouchables MC who entered the Outlaws' clubhouse in Grønland, Oslo on 22 January 1997. Verbert was left hemiplegic. Five members of Untouchables were charged in the case, one of whom was sentenced in September 1998 to three-and-a-half years in prison for the attempted murder of Verbert.
On 2 February 1997, a senior Bandidos member being held at a detention center in
Køge
Køge (, older spelling ''Kjøge'') is a seaport on the coast of Køge Bugt (''Bay of Køge'') 39 km southwest of Copenhagen. It is the principal town and seat of Køge Municipality, Region Sjælland, Denmark. In 2022, the urban area had a p ...
, Denmark survived an attempt on his life when an anti-tank missile fired at his cell failed to explode. Another Bandidos member survived being shot while walking to his car near a
kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...
on
Amager
Amager ( or, especially among older speakers, ) in the Øresund is Denmark's most densely populated island, with more than 212,000 inhabitants (January 2021) a small appendage to Zealand. The protected natural area of ''Naturpark Amager'' (includi ...
. The Hells Angels again attempted to kill a jailed rival by firing an anti-tank missile into a police cellblock in
Holbæk
Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 29,608 (1 January 2022).Alnabru
Alnabru is a neighbourhood of north-eastern Oslo. It lies in the middle of the southern part of the Grorud valley (Groruddalen). The name – which means "Alna bridge" – comes from that of the Alna River, from which are also derived the names ...
, Oslo, where two Bandidos members worked, was bombed on 13 March 1997. There were no casualties. Two men were charged in the case.
Yet another anti-tank missile was fired at the Helsingborg Hells Angels clubhouse on 22 March 1997. The grenade failed to explode and nobody was injured.
A Hells Angels associate was wounded by a shot from a 9mm pistol, fired at him from another car as he waited at a stop light in
Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...
, Copenhagen on 1 April 1997. Later that day, two men, including a Bandidos member, were arrested on suspicion of carrying out the shooting. An attempt was made on the life of a Bandidos member being held at
Vestre Prison
Vestre Prison ( da, Vestre Fængsel) is the main jail of the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Erected in 1895, it is Denmark's largest prison with a total capacity of 530 inmates. It primarily houses pretrial detainees, not convicted felons.
History
...
on 1 May 1997. An
electric razor
An electric shaver (also known as the dry razor, electric razor, or simply shaver) is a razor with an electrically powered rotating or oscillating blade. The electric shaver usually does not require the use of shaving cream, soap, or water. The ...
sent to him contained ninety-five grams of explosives and would have exploded had it been plugged in. Prison authorities suspected the device, however, and confiscated it before it could be used. A Bandidos member was shot and wounded in Køge on 7 May 1997. On 12 May 1997, three Bandidos supporters were injured by gunfire while in a car in Aalborg.
On the orders of the Hells Angels' Oslo chapter president, Torkjell Alsaker, Screwdrivers MC members detonated a thirty-to-fifty kilogram van bomb outside the entrance of the Bandidos' headquarters in Drammen on 4 June 1997, reducing the building to rubble and killing Irene Astrid Bækkevold, a fifty-one-year-old woman who was passing in her car. Twenty-two others were injured. As with the shooting of Jan Krogh Jensen the previous year, it suspected that the intended target of the blast was Hells Angel-turned-Bandido Michael Garcia Olsen. The visiting Olsen and two others fled the burning clubhouse immediately after the explosion. The Screwdrivers were granted full membership to the Hells Angels as a result of the attack.Slik sprengte de Drammen ''
Verdens Gang
''Verdens Gang'' ("The course of the world"), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, having declined from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. ''VG'' is n ...
'' (17 November 2001) After a four-and-a-half year investigation, seven men associated with the Hells Angels, including Alsaker, were convicted for their roles in the bombing.
On 7 June 1997, four Bandidos members were shot outside a restaurant in
Liseleje
Liseleje is a former fishing village and popular tourist resort in Halsnæs Municipality, North Zealand, some 60 kilometres northwest of Copenhagen, Denmark. The original village is surrounded by extensive areas of summerhouses. It has merged wi ...
, Denmark. Bjørn Gudmandsen was killed and three others were wounded. Hells Angels member Vagn Smidt was convicted of murder and three counts of attempted murder, and he was sentenced to life in prison on 20 November 1998.Denmark Hells Angel Gets Life
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
(20 November 1998) The final incident in the biker war took place on 11 June 1997 when a Bandidos clubhouse in Dalby was attacked with a hand grenade.
The conflict effectively ended during the summer of 1997 as the continual hostilities were producing no clear victor. The deaths of Janne Krohn and Irene Bækkevold, two female non-combatants, resulted in considerable public backlash against the bikers as well as intense scrutiny from politicians and law enforcement. Internal pressure also contributed to the war's conclusion. Suffering battle fatigue after years of hostilities and facing sudden, universal condemnation from the public, the bikers were eager to end the conflict. Many bikers' businesses were also negatively effected. With each side holding a strong incentive to find a solution, American and European leaders of the Bandidos and Hells Angels met again in the U.S., first in Colorado and then in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
in June 1997. Ultimately, the clubs' Danish chapters were pivotal in producing the biker war's resolution. The Copenhagen police also helped initiate relations by providing logistical support and security for peace conferences, although they did not participate in the negotiations. A treaty designating each club's territory, right down to individual bars, cafes and nightclubs, was signed. Hells Angels Denmark nomads chapter president Bent Svane Nielsen and Bandidos European president Jim Tinndahn held a live televised press conference on 25 September 1997 and, without revealing details of their agreement, announced an official end to hostilities. The crime level among gang members subsequently returned to pre-conflict levels.
Aftermath
A joint task force was established as a result of the Nordic Biker War, with police in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden cooperating with the United States
Drug Enforcement Administration
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within th ...
(DEA) and
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as the ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevent ...
(ATF). In Denmark, a team consisting of homicide investigators from the
National Police National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries:
*Afghanistan: Afghan National Police
*Haiti: Haitian National Police
*Colombia: National Police of Colombia
*Cuba: Cuban National Police
*East Timor: National Police of ...
, the homicide department of the
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
police and individual employees from the police circles of
Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Ã…rhus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...
,
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...
and
Roskilde
Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
was also formed.
Political backlash against the bikers was particularly severe in Denmark. The
Folketing
The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands ...
(Danish Parliament) doubled the maximum penalty for illegal possession of weapons to four years' imprisonment, and also gave the police new powers to carry out phone tapping and house searches when occupants are away. Furthermore, police were given the ability to confiscate a suspect's money or property if he is unable to prove he obtained it legitimately. A bill, popularly known as the '' Rockerloven'' ("Rocker Act"), was passed on 15 October 1996 to allow the police to evict motorcycle gangs from their headquarters. Bikers had previously taken advantage of a government policy of subsidizing clubhouses for any hobbyist or special interest group with a membership of five or more. Many of these headquarters were situated in residential areas.
138 people were sentenced to a total of 240 years in prison as a result of the 1996–1997 period of the conflict alone. Several of those convicted were given
life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
for murder and attempted murder. Specific wings were created for housing motorcycle gang members at
Vridsløselille Prison
Vridsløselille Prison (Danish: Vridsløselille Fængsel) is a former state prison located in Albertslund in the western suburbs of Copenhagen in Denmark. It was operated as a state prison from its opening in 1859 to January 2016 and then served ...
and Horsens State Prison in Denmark. The last gang member imprisoned for crimes committed during the biker war was paroled in December 2015.
The biker war resulted in eleven killings (six Bandidos members or associates, three Hells Angels members or associates, and two non-combatants), seventy-four attempted killings, and ninety-six people injured. Of those wounded, forty were related to the Hells Angels and thirty-four to the Bandidos, while twenty-two were on-duty police officers or civilians.
Ongoing simultaneously to the Nordic Biker War was the
Rock Machine
The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club (RMMC) or Rock Machine is an international outlaw motorcycle club founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1986. It has twenty one Canadian chapters spread across seven provinces. It also has nine chapters in the ...
. Impressed with how the Scandinavian Bandidos had fared against the Angels, the outmatched Rock Machine sought an alliance with the Bandidos. In June 1997, three senior members of the Rock Machine –
Johnny Plescio
Johnny Plescio (1964 – 8 September 1998) was a Canadian outlaw biker and gangster, who was one of the founding members of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club. Plescio became widely known for his "strong-arm tactics" and was highly respected with ...
Vaughan, Ontario
Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...
on 1 December 2000. The Danish branch of the Bandidos also sponsored the Chatham, Ontario chapter of the
Loners
A loner is a person who does not seek out, or may actively avoid, interaction with other people. There are many potential reasons for their solitude. Intentional reasons include introversion, mysticism, spirituality, religion, or personal consi ...
, which joined the Bandidos as probationary members on 22 May 2001 and became full members on 1 December 2001 in another move that was not sanctioned by the international headquarters of the Bandidos in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, Texas. It was agreed that even though the Danish branch of the Bandidos were responsible for the Canadian branch as their sponsors, the American branch would supervise the Canadian Bandidos.
List of victims
* Joakim Boman, a 23-year-old Rednecks MC member shot dead at a nightclub in
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...
, Sweden on 13 February 1994. His murder remains unsolved.
* Kari Korpi, the 35-year-old president of Klan MC who was fatally shot outside a restaurant in
Järvenpää
Järvenpää (; sv, Träskända) is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located on the Helsinki–Riihimäki railway track in Uusimaa region, some north of Helsinki. Neighbouring municipalities are Tuusula, Sipoo and Mäntsälä. People ...
, Finland on 22 June 1994. Barley MC president Juha Nousiainen was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to nine years in prison on 22 September 1994.
* Michael Ljunggren, the 33-year-old president of Bandidos Sweden. Shot dead while riding his motorcycle on the
European route E4
European route E4 passes from north to south through Sweden from the border with Finland, with a total length of . The Finnish part lies entirely within Tornio in northern Finland, and is only long. The Swedish part traverses most of Sweden ex ...
, south of
Markaryd
Markaryd () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Markaryd Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden with 3,966 inhabitants in 2010.
International relations
Twin towns — Sister cities
Markaryd is Twin towns and sister cities, twinn ...
, Sweden on 17 July 1995. His murder remains unsolved.
*Jarkko Kokko, the 27-year-old vice-president of Bandidos Finland. Shot in an attack on the Bandidos' clubhouse in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
, Finland on 1 March 1996, he died from his wounds on 17 March. Hells Angels members Ilkka Ukkonen and Jussi Penttinen were convicted of the murder; on 7 June 1996, Ukkonen was sentenced to twelve-and-a-half years' imprisonment and Penttinen to six years'.
* Uffe Lindenskov Larsen, the 32-year-old president of the Bandidos "Southside" chapter in Dalby, Denmark. He was shot and killed during the Copenhagen Airport ambush on 10 March 1996. Hells Angels members
Michael Brokside
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name "Michael"
* Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...
and Jørgen Nielsen were convicted of Larsen's murder on 20 December 1996 and 16 October 1997, respectively, and both were sentenced to life imprisonment.
* Jan Krogh Jensen, a 37-year old Bandidos member shot dead in
Mjøndalen
Mjøndalen is a built up area in Drammen municipality in Viken county (formerly Buskerud county), Norway. It is situated south of the Drammenselva River opposite of Krokstadelva.
History
Mjøndalen has traditionally been a railway site most k ...
, Norway on 16 July 1996. A Hells Angels member was acquitted of Krogh Jensen's murder on 11 June 1998, and the investigation into the killing was closed in 2000.
* Louis Linde Nielsen, a 38-year-old Hells Angels prospect, and Janne Krohn, a 29-year-old woman, were killed in a rocket attack on the Hells Angels' clubhouse in Copenhagen, Denmark on 6 October 1996. Bandidos prospect Niels Poulsen was convicted of the murders and sentenced to life imprisonment on 13 March 1998.
* Kim Thrysøe Svendsen, a 26-year-old Hells Angels member shot and killed in
Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
, Denmark on 10 January 1997. Svendsen's murder is unsolved.
* Irene Astrid Bækkevold, a 51-year-old passer-by woman killed in a bombing carried out on the Bandidos' clubhouse in
Drammen
Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken (county), Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and village ...
, Norway on 4 June 1997. Seven Hells Angels members were convicted of perpetrating the attack on 10 June 2002.
*Bjørn Gudmandsen, a 24-year-old Bandidos member shot dead in
Liseleje
Liseleje is a former fishing village and popular tourist resort in Halsnæs Municipality, North Zealand, some 60 kilometres northwest of Copenhagen, Denmark. The original village is surrounded by extensive areas of summerhouses. It has merged wi ...
, Denmark on 7 June 1997. Hells Angels member Vagn Smidt was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life in prison on 20 November 1998.
Subsequent events
The Bandidos and Hells Angels quickly expanded into their allotted territories after the peace treaty, and the crime rates among the clubs' members returned to pre-conflict levels. Subsequent conflicts among the two groups has largely been avoided. The Finnish Bandidos and Hells Angels have operated in parallel rather than as competitors. In Norway, a
cold war
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
over territory and members has emerged, with the Bandidos allied with the
Outlaws
An outlaw is a person living outside the law.
Outlaws or The Outlaws may also refer to:
Film and television Film
* ''The Outlaws'' (1950 film), an Italian crime film
* ''Outlaws'' (1985 film), a French film
* ''The Outlaws'' (2017 film), a Sou ...
on one side, and the HAMC allied with the
Coffin Cheaters
The Coffin Cheaters are an international outlaw motorcycle club that was formed in Perth, Western Australia (WA), in 1970. The Perth-based Coffin Cheaters amalgamated in 1999 with a previously unrelated club in Victoria called Coffin Cheaters, a ...
on the other. Both clubs have continued to expand in the Nordic region since the end of the biker war in 1997. By 2005, the Hells Angels had formed eight chapters in Denmark, four in Finland, five in Norway and six in Sweden. The Bandidos had established thirteen branches in Denmark, two in Finland, five in Norway and four in Sweden. The Bandidos and Hells Angels remained the most prominent criminal organizations in Scandinavia until the early 2000s and, as such, were capable of preventing any competing gangs from being established. In the mid-2000s, however, street gangs began to emerge and the motorcycle gangs' hegemony over organized crime was broken. While the status of the established motorcycle gangs has been challenged by the street gangs, researchers believe that the bikers may have benefited from police focus on their new rivals. In response to the changing criminal landscape, the leaders of the Bandidos and HAMC formed their own affiliated street gangs which serve as recruitment pools and carry out street-level crimes on behalf of the clubs. These gangs include the Bandidos'
X-Team
X-Team is a gang associated with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club. Members are not required to own a motorcycle, and the group is essentially a street gang recruiting young criminals to provide reinforcements for the club. X-Team members carry out cri ...
, and Hells Angels' Red & White Crew and AK81.
On 21 March 2001, former Bandidos member
Claus Bork Hansen
Claus Barrit Bork Hansen (31 December 1963 – 21 March 2001), nicknamed "Karate Claus", was a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the European sergeant-at-arms of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, as well as the president of the club's Hed ...
was shot twenty-six times and killed in
Vanløse
Vanløse is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It lies on the western border of the municipality. Vanløse covers an area of 6.69 km², and has a population of 36,115, making Vanløse the smallest district of Copenhagen ...
, Copenhagen after returning from a restaurant visit with his girlfriend, porn star Dorthe Damsgaard. The police had warned him several times, as recently the day before, that he was on the Bandidos' hit list and offered him protection, which he refused. Hansen had been expelled from the Bandidos and had transformed the former Bandidos clubhouse in
Hedehusene
Hedehusene is a suburban town located on the rail line between Copenhagen and Roskilde in the Capital Region of Denmark. It has absorbed the villages of ''Baldersbrønde'' and Fløng and almost merged with Roskilde's eastern Trekroner neighbourhoo ...
Nørrebro
Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current Nørreport station ...
two evenings before Hansen was shot dead. In the Eastern High Court, one of the men accused of the murder –
Roskilde
Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
Bandidos chapter president Karl Martin Thorup – denied that the meeting between the Bandidos and Hells Angels in Nørrebro was about Hansen and his association with the Red & White Crew. It later emerged in the High Court, however, that the Bandidos and Hells Angels feared a new biker war because Hansen was suspected of pitting the two clubs against each other in revenge for his expulsion from the Bandidos. The HAMC leadership agreed at the meeting with senior Bandidos members that the Bandidos could kill Hansen. On 12 April 2002, Jens Christian Thorup was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the murder. The twelve jurors and three magistrates also decided that he should be admitted to a psychiatric hospital when the
Judicial Council
The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
determined he was mentally ill. On 15 January 2003, the
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
ruled that his sentence should be reduced to sixteen years in prison. The other three suspects – Karl Martin Thorup, Kent "Kemo" Sørensen and Peter Buch Rosenberg – were acquitted of charges of murder and conspiracy to murder on 11 April 2002.
Bandidos associate Flemming Jensen was beaten, stomped and stabbed to death after getting into a fight with a group of Hells Angels members at a tavern on Jomfru Ane Gade in
Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
on 12 August 2001. The twenty-eight-year-old Jensen was a well-known figure in the cityscape of
Langå
Langå, is a railway town in central Denmark with a population of 2.811 (2022), located in Randers municipality in Region Midtjylland in Jutland. It was the site of the municipal council of the now former Langå municipality, until 1 January 2007. ...
and
Randers
Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).Bullshit
''Bullshit'' (also ''bullshite'' or ''bullcrap'') is a common English expletive which may be shortened to the euphemism ''bull'' or the initialism B.S. In British English, "bollocks" is a comparable expletive. It is mostly a slang term and a ...
in Randers), but after the Cerberus dissolution had no firm connection to groups or gangs. According to Bandidos president
Jim Tinndahn
Jan Leif Tinndahn (born 27 January 1961), also known as "Big Jim" and "''Solkongen''" ("Sun King"), is a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Europe between 1994 and 2012.
Early life
The ...
, however, Jensen was not an aspirant to the biker group, but had served a sentence with Bandidos members at Nyborg State Prison. Shortly after the killing, police arrested Jørn "Jønke" Nielsen, who was charged with aggravated violence resulting in death as, according to witnesses, he had kicked and stomped on Flemming Jensen. 21-year-old Hells Angels prospect Jesper Østenkær Kristoffersen confessed that he was the one who carried the knife. On 7 February 2002 at the District Court in Aalborg, Kristoffersen was sentenced to six years in prison for violence resulting in death. Nielsen was acquitted at the District Court in Aalborg on 4 April 2002. On 18 September 2002, however, he was sentenced to four years in prison for aggravated violence. On 17 August 2001, Flemming Jensen's funeral was held at Værum Church in Randers, where over a hundred people attended. A high-ranking Bandidos member promised revenge after the killing of their friend Jensen. However, Chief Detective Inspector Aage Nørgaard from Aalborg Police told '' B.T.'': "When the bikers say they want to avenge the killing, it is almost their slogan. They always say that. I compare it to when the Queen says 'God save Denmark'." There were no new clashes, however.
In June 2010, Bandidos president Jim Tinndahn announced that the peace treaty between his club and the Hells Angels had collapsed, partly because the HAMC had breached terms of the agreement by admitting six Bandidos members. Bandidos vice-president Michael "The Chef" Rosenvold and Hells Angels president Jørn Nielsen both confirmed the end of the truce in September 2011. The Bandidos subsequently set up branches in locations that, according to the agreement, were Hells Angels territory, including
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...
and
Amager
Amager ( or, especially among older speakers, ) in the Øresund is Denmark's most densely populated island, with more than 212,000 inhabitants (January 2021) a small appendage to Zealand. The protected natural area of ''Naturpark Amager'' (includi ...
. Police sources said at the time that, despite the end of the agreement, a new biker war seemed unlikely, although there were clashes as both clubs moved into the previously neutral territory of
Esbjerg
Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport town and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban population of 71,698 (1 January 2022)
. The renewed tensions resulted in another outbreak of violence in September 2012. After two stabbings and an attempted hit-and-run, a seventeen-ton unmanned truck with a brick on the accelerator ploughed into a property used by the Bandidos on Amager on 18 September 2012. Police suspect the incident was carried out by the Hells Angels support group AK81. The following day, a hundred bikers – including Michael Rosenvold, who succeeded Jim Tinndahn as Bandidos Europe president – were arrested as police raided eighteen locations across
Zealand
Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020.
It is the 1 ...
in an attempt to assert control ahead of a what they believed to be an imminent gang war. Guns, knives, axes, drugs and anabolic steroids were also seized in the raids.Police raid biker gang strongholds ''
The Copenhagen Post
''The Copenhagen Post'', also stylized ''CPH Post'', is a weekly newspaper providing Danish news in English both nationally and internationally; it is the only English-language newspaper printed regularly in Denmark.
History and profile
Founded ...
'' (20 September 2012)
See also
*
List of outlaw motorcycle club conflicts
An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture. It is generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream cu ...
Hells Angels MC criminal allegations and incidents
Numerous police and international intelligence agencies classify the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club as a motorcycle gang and contend that members carry out widespread violent crimes, including drug dealing, trafficking in stolen goods, gunrunnin ...
The American-Scandinavian Foundation
The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) is an American non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting international understanding through educational and cultural exchange between the United States and Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway
...