Several members of the Gypsy Joker Outlaw Motorcycle Club were indicted by a federal grand jury on murder, kidnapping and racketeering conspiracy charges Thursday.
According to U.S. Department of Justice officials, the gang has ties inWashington and Oregon, including a clubhouse in Salem.
Among those charged was the club's national president, 61-year-old Kenneth Hause, a longtimeAumsville resident.
Hause, Mark Dencklau, 58, of Woodburn,EarlFisher, 48, of Gresham, Ryan Negrinelli, 36, of Gresham, Joseph Folkerts, 61, of Battleground, Washingtonand a sixth unnamed defendant were charged with conspiring to conduct and participate in a racketeering enterprise.
Dencklau, Fisher, Negrinelli, Folkerts and the unnamed defendant were also charged with murder in aid of racketeering, kidnapping in aid of racketeering, resulting in death, kidnapping resulting in deathand conspiracy to commit kidnapping, resulting in death for the2015 kidnapping and murder of Robert Huggins, a former Gypsy Joker member.
According to court documents, the men murdered Huggins in order tomaintainand increase their positions in the gang.
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Members are accused of trafficking pounds of methamphetamine throughout the Northwest, assaulting rival club members, attacking their own members and forcibly tattooing over the tattoos of ousted members.
“According to the indictment, since at least 2003, the Gypsy Jokers have engaged in a wide range of crimes, including kidnapping, murder, drug dealing, robbery, extortion, and witness tampering,” Assistant Attorney GeneralBrian Benczkowskisaid Thursday.
He thanked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Portland Police Department, and federal prosecutors for their efforts and promised to work hard to holdleaders and members of the "brutal and highly organized gang" accountable for their alleged crimes.
In his comments, U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williamssingled out Hause.
“Kenneth Hause is the leader of a criminal organization that, through its many chapters and support clubs, has sowed violence and intimidation throughout the Pacific Northwest," he said. "This is an organization whose members and associates pride themselves on living outside the law and use kidnapping, assault, murder and other forms of violence to extend and maintain their power."
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Hause is accused of punching a member of the Oregon Veterans Motorcycle Club with "large rings or brass knuckles" after summoning him to the clubhouse of the Northwest Veterans MotorcycleClub, a Gypsy Joker support club.
Hause told the man he had 30 days to shut down his club during the assault, according to the indictment.
The man lost several teeth and was hospitalized following the assault.
Multiple fights later broke out over the veterans motorcycle club's association with the Gypsy Jokers.
In 2012, Hause allegedly assaulted a Gypsy Joker member with a bag filled with heavy objects, knocking him unconscious. That same year, he punched and stomped on a fellow member while wearing heavy motorcycle boots.
While knocking out his teeth, Hause told the man he no longer was a member of his gang.
Federal prosecutors also accused Hause of trafficking 100 bricks of methamphetamine stored in milk crates in a trailer in 2009 and continuing to deal meth for several years.
ATF Special Agent in Charge Darek Pleasantssaid Hause, as the president of a criminal organization, led the violent criminals in the Gypsy Jokers, put the community at risk and showed contempt for law and order.
Hause, a convicted felon, previously faced charges of fourth-degree assault, possession of a controlled substance, DUI, harassment and illegal possession of a firearm by a felon.
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According to the superseding indictment, the Gypsy Jokerclubprotects its power, territory and profits "through violence and intimidation and raises money through extortion, robbery and the distribution of narcotics."
The organization is known for using fear through its members and associates as a tactic for establishing and maintaining its power.
The club oversees several “support clubs” in Oregon and Washington, including the Road Brothers Northwest Motorcycle Club, Solutions Motorcycle Club, Northwest Veterans Motorcycle Club, High-Side Ridersand the Freedom Fellowship Motorcycle Club.
In addition to the criminal charges brought against the named defendants, the government is seeking forfeiture of a property located in Salem used as a Gypsy Joker clubhouse.
According to court records, the clubhouse is located on the 2800 block of Brooks Ave. NE.
For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodwort@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth
