Public prosecutor calls for Hells Angels ban

The Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM), today launched a wide-ranging attack on the Hells Angels, urging the courts to ban the organisation in the Netherlands and dissolve their associations.


The OM said the persistent involvement in crime by the seven Dutch Hells Angels’ chapters made them ‘undesirable’ in Dutch society. ‘Criminal behaviour is… part of the Hells Angels’ culture,’ the public prosecutor said in a statement. ‘It is not a question of taking action against a few members, but against widespread organised criminal activities.’
Last year, police raided 45 locations as part of a long-running investigation into the Hells Angels. Twenty-two members are due to appear in court next summer on charges of murder, theft, threatening behaviour, blackmail and possession of drugs and weapons.
‘Worldwide, the Hells Angels describe themselves as a motorbike club for free spirits who live on the edge of society,’ the public prosecutor said. ‘Many others would describe it as a well-oiled criminal organisation with branches all over the world.’
A spokesman for the Amsterdam chapter told NOS Television that the public prosecution department had little chance of getting the entire organisation banned. The allegation that only white people could join was also wrong, Hells Angels lawyer Vincent Kraal said. ‘Half the Amsterdam chapter is coloured.’

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