by: Aaliyah Seabrooks, Channing King
Posted:
Updated:
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Authorities offered details on the warrants served Thursday as part of a nationwide, multi-agency sweep of what it alleges is an outlaw motorcycle club.
Kenneth Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, alleged that the Thug Riders Motorcycle Club “operated a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in violence like murder, arson and assault.” He also alleged that club members and associates took part in extortion and identity fraud.
“The Thug Riders Motorcycle Club was originally founded in 2003, and remains a violent gang today, and is located throughout the United States,” said Parker before listing other countries around the world in which the gang allegedly operates.
The 14 members’ indictments are split across three different counts:
Count 1: Racketeering Conspiracy, a count punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
Count 2: Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury in Aid of Racketeering, punishable again by a prison term of up to 20 years.
Count 3: Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering, Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, punishable by three years in prison.
Count 4: Attempted Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering, again punishable by three years in prison.
The indictment alleges the racketeering conspiracy began in January 2019.
Parker alleged the members of the Dayton, Ohio chapter of the TRMC “engaged in a number of overt acts in support of the enterprise,” including:
- Blowing up the vehicle of a former member in Huber Heights in May 2021 for not paying $1,000 and giving up his motorcycle.
- Killing a man in a September 2021 shootout in Harrison Township by firing more than 40 rounds into the vehicle the man was occupying alongside three others.
- Firing more than 190 rounds into the Lexington, Kentucky, clubhouse of a rival motorcycle club in April 2023.
- Causing an incident in a Dayton bar in June 2023 after being denied service due to their jacket patches. TRMC members allegedly broke the leg of one patron.
- Attacking and firing a shot a rival gang member in July 2023 at another Dayton bar.
- Travelling to the Springfield clubhouse of a rival gang and engaging in a shootout that resulted in one of the TRMC members being shot twice in the face.
“Let this indictment send a message that we will continue to work diligently together to address any person or organization that would like to bring harm to our community,” said Parker. “And that’s regardless of the perpetrator being on foot, riding a bicycle, driving a car or, as in this case, traveling our streets and highways on a motorcycle.”
During Thursday’s raids, law enforcement arrested:
- Juan A. Robles, 45
- Joey A. Marshall, 44
- Jared T. Peters, 37
- Brandon W. Fisher, 26
- John A. Smith, 37
- Norman D. Beach, 49
- Michael S. Henry, 40
- Daniel B. Hutton, 39
- Michael L. Reese, 44
- Mathew J. Hawkins, 32
- Joseph M. Rader, 32
- Justin J. Baker, 29
- Cody D. Hughes, 28
- Brent A. Egleston, 36
Court documents allege Robles was key in organizing the Dayton chapter in 2019, currently serving as the Midwest Regional “boss.”
Others also allegedly held leadership roles with the club. Marshall allegedly served as the regional “sergeant at arms,” while Peters was the alleged president of the Dayton chapter, with Fisher as the chapter’s “sergeant at arms” and Smith as its “enforcer.”
“By addressing these individuals and their leadership positions in the motorcycle club, we have dealt a serious blow to this violent organization operating in the Dayton area, surrounding communities, throughout the state of Ohio and other states,” said Parker.
John Nokes, assistant special agent in charge of ATF’s Columbus field division, said that approximately 300 law enforcement personnel simultaneously executed arrest and search warrants across the United States Thursday.
Among the pieces of evidence seized in the sweep, were 100 firearms, 15,000 rounds of ammunition and digital data that will be used to widen the investigation, said Nokes.
The Dayton chapter maintained clubhouses in Dayton and in Harrison Township.
Included in the coaltion:
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation
- The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
- Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office
- Dayton Police Department
- Huber Heights Police Department
- with assistance from the Springfield, Columbus, Riverside, Fairborn, Xenia, Lexington and Richmond police departments; Greene, Miami and Clark county sheriff’s offices; Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol
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