The Charlotte Observer from Charlotte, North Carolina • 8

IA THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER Thursday Aug 20 1981 BIKER GANGS: TIIE NEW MA FLA Man's Disappearance Fits 11 eadly Pattern 1 "Once people start dealing with the Hell's Angels that's the end of them They invariably wind up on a slab" A Union County officer barn in Stokes County north of Winston Salem the victims police believe of a soured drug deal with members of the I leit's Angels Now police believe members of the Hells Angels killed Ferguson too "My theory is they just wasted him" said a Union County police officer familiar with the case "They was afraid he was going to talk" At the time of the second burglary police say the four suspects were staying at the apartment of Norris Davis Davis and Stegall the last man to see Ferguson were co-owners of Garage in Marshville Frustrated by the inability of police to find "Dub" as the family called him the Fergusons hired a private detective They even consulted a psychic in the Midwest The detective found nothing The psychic told them "I'm afraid when we do find him he's going to be floating He's got with the wrong crowd and it ran too fast for him" Still Henry Ferguson clings to his hopes ills voice quavers when he talks about his son in the past tense "For eight months I couldn't talk to nobody it hurt so bad" he says "I'm still hoping that he'll come in" By ROBIN CLARK and TLX O'NEILL Obferver Staff Writers 1 "WT" Ferguson Truck driver Outdoorsman Country boy A bit directionless but likable Just )116 the same Then one day the 24year-old Union County man got involved with the liell's Angels Now he's missing and presumed dead Police say Ferguson is one of at least rtf 4" five Hell's Angels associates who have 0" disappeared in the Carolinas in recent '0 ----1 years Ills disappearance they say fits a It pattern: 4 i 0 Bikers kill when people talk "Once people start dealing with the il ii4 Hell's Angels that's the end of them" 4i' -4 said one Union County officer who spe- A cializes in motorcycle gang violence 411r "They inyariably wind up on a slab" Police don't know how Ferguson got involved with the gang But they believe his disappearance is linked to a Feb 22 1980 burglary at the home of James Reid '3 a neighbor in Indian Trail l'erguson who was friends with Reld's son John told police he had gone to the home that night to borrow a tape record blVT' Fercruson ing while the Reids were out While he was there Ferguson said a man knocked ntissing man at the door and asked for John After the man left Ferguson called the Later the family found a coin collection had been stolen from its hiding place in a tool box and police immediately suspected Ferguson Pressured by police Ferguson promised to cooperate Four days later the day before he was to meet with police and take a polygraph test Ferguson disappeared That was Feb 26 Mike Stegall co-owner of a Marshville garage was the last person to see Ferguson Stegall told police Ferguson was working at the garage on a blue '73 MG he'd sold Ferguson the day before perhaps out of shame for stealing from his longtime friends But a second burglary of the Reid home 13 days after Ferguson's disappearance police say points to Hell's Angels Involvement Thousands of dollars in precious metals coins and antiques were stolen Police arrested Richard Ii Yandle 27 identified as a Durham Hell's Angel Jerry David Guy 36 identified as a Hell's Angels associate Michael Hawkins 25 of Durham and Carolyn Norman 26 of Monroe Yandle was convicted and is serving a five- to 10-year term in Raleigh's Central Prison Ferguson left about 9 pm he said Charges against Hawkins and Ms Norm without saying goodbye man were dismissed At first police figured Ferguson fled to Guy and a girlfriend were found muravoid prosecution in the Reid theft or dered on Nov 6 1980 outside a tobacco Outnumbered And Outsmarted Police Can't Keep Up Continued from Page IA kr-- itt4'114 rilLAft4 kf i rit2 f' 16' "I' "1 a row Nit N' I 't'ikell' e4ivit 4r A 1 4 404 4f 4" ''X ''k Plates At The 'font Thumb Grill A Them In Charlotte Frequented By Heirs Angels brother of Charlotte Outlaw William 4- '1 "Chains" Elamont owns less than 2 acres 11 0 on which sit two decaying and uninhabited cabins Some of this misinformation can be blamed on manpower limitations budget restraints and regulations that inhibit in Cosi'7 telligence-gathering efforts Justice Department guidelines set down by then-US Attorney General Edward Levi in 1975 prohibit federal au- thorities from keeping intelligence files 4 on domestic groups including motorcycle clubs That prohibition doesn't apply to state or local police and many agencies keep olossiers on the gangs 50 ZNSis But the fear of civil suits and political 1'k repercussions often means the files are '14 i to-- 6W ts-P the responsibility of one officer who is itl apt to keep them locked in the trunk of his car or in a closet at home away from 4 r- 1K the eyes of office visitors and fellow em- 4 ployees Is The files are updated in closed-door 4P0444-44-77 -''e'it1721: telephone conversations and mailings be- '4 tween officers in different cities During its investigation The Observer 1 examined the files of 10 Carolinas police Oef: agencies ''itiaj '4' l'he terms were usually the same 440141: To quote one police officer "I don't aAt 's ::3::4 Hy exist and neither do these files" Such a cloak-and-dagger atmosphere creates a haphazard system Bad information is sometimes passed along and some solid leads never reach the appropriate authorities l'' 4 Charlotte police for instance were surprised recently to learn that a Hell's 1 Angels telephone directory obtained by an Eastern North Carolina police department contained the names and phone numbers of three Charlotte-area persons who have had connections with gang members Carolinas law enforcement officials have few tools to use against the gangs 43 nd police operations show it Says NC Attorney General Rufus Ed- l'olice Check License misten "Their lines of communication are better than ours much better" Edmisten said that with the exception a day in jail it isn't reflected on his four of the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco page "rap sheet" and Firearms (ATE) federal authorities "Cops exaggerate" says Edmisten don't freely share information on the "hut I have no reason to believe that any gangs with state and local authorities the reports I have read are exagger ''The feds are told they can't talk be- ated They simply have committed a cause of various laws" he said "It irri- great many unspeakable acts and get by tates me It's a one-way street" with it much of the time because they are so Many law enforcement officers share mobile Edmisten's views "We tend to run them out of one area They also feel they lack other impor- and into another with traffic violations" tant tools Edmisten says "Quite obviously some- "When you can't infiltrate a group and thing has to be done on a massive they use terrorism to inhibit people from statewide scale that will get at rape mur- talking the only way you can get them is der drug violations and the like" by electronic surveillance" says Ron Edmisten favors two steps he says Guerette a Charlotte police intelligence would "curb these hoodlums" officer who monitored the gangs until his First he favors a statewide investigaresignation last month tive commission that could compel wit-Telephone wiretapping is illegal in the nesses to testify under oath Carolinas unless practiced by federal "I don't care who they are" he said' agencies with court orders "If you ever make some substantive cases In addition NC grand juries are not against them their people will fall by the Investigative bodies They take a passive wayside role weighing evidence rather than gath- It's unlikely one of them ering it SC grand juries have subpoena wouldn't cave in and testify" power but rarely use it Edmisten proposed the formation of a With so little ammunition police statewide investigative commission in pecially local police are viewed as 1978 to combat organized crime more nuisance than threat by most out- A special committee of the Governor's Jaw bikers Crime Commission held lengthy hearings Typically a police officer stops a lone on the matter before deciding not to ask or having slick tires cyclist cites him the NC legislature to authorize the corn- and if the mission I ficer is There were numerous allegations be I ucky fore the committee that investigative catches him grand juries were very subject to abuses with an ille- 004' 1 especially harassment" said Burley gal weapon Mitchell director of the NC Department pr some 1016 oorsol'i of Crime Control and Public Safety drugs 14110' 4 "The final conclusion was that we The police were not yet to the point in North Caro-records of 1 lina to accept the negatives In New York most outlaw i 1N or New Jersey where there is a lot of bikers are organized crime it would be a very good replete with I thing But our folks just shied away from petty ar I it at this time" rests includ- Second and more Importantly Edmis- 11 ing many s' 44" ten said he would like to add five investit at a -''H gators to the six member special opera thrown out tions division of the State Bureau of i when they Investigation and make the SBI the "rat get to court Harold Dean Cheek lying point" for a statewide task force The rec- composed of federal state and local inord of Ilarold Dean Cheek who police vestigators records indicate is the leader of the With participation by the SI31 and the Winston-Salem chapter of the Hells An- NC Highway Patrol the task force could gels is a case in point cross city and county lines that now At last count in June Cheek had been serve as barriers to law enforcement arrested 54 times Most charges were for Federal participation would give the traffic violations though they included group the power to tap telephone lines one charge of assault with a deadly and protect witnesses by giving them weapon and several of storebreaking new identities Edmisten said that with the exception a day in jail it isn't reflected on his four- of the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco page "rap sheet" and Firearms (ATF) federal authorities "Cops exaggerate" says Edmisten don't freely share information on the "but I have no reason to believe that any gangs with state and local authorities of the reports I have read are exagger- ''The feds are told they can't talk be- ated They simply have committed a of various laws" he said "It irri- great many unspeakable acts and get by me It's a one-way street" with it much of the time because they are Many law enforcement officers share so mobile Edmisten's views "We tend to run them out of one area They also feel they lack other impor- and into another with traffic violations" tant tools Edmisten says "Quite obviously some- has one on a massive "When you can't infiltrate a group and thing they use terrorism to inhibit people from statewide scale that will get at rape mur- der drug violations and the like talking the only way you can get them is by electronic surveillance" says Ron Edmisten favors two steps he says Guerette a Charlotte police intelligence would "curb these hoodlums" who monitored the gangs until his First he favors a statewide investiga- last month tive commission that could compel wit- Telephone wiretapping is illegal in the ncsses to testify under oath Carolinas unless practiced by federal "I don't care who they are" he said agencies with court orders "If you ever make some substantive cases In addition NC grand juries are not against them their people will fall by the bodies They take a passive wayside role weighing evidence rather than gath- It's unlikely one of them it SC grand juries have subpoena wouldn't cave in and testify" power but rarely use it Edmisten proposed the formation of a With so little ammunition police statewide investigative commission in pecially local police are viewed as 1978 to combat organized crime more nuisance than threat by most out- A special committee of the Governor's Jaw bikers Crime Commission held lengthy hearings Typically a police officer stops a lone on the matter before deciding not to ask cyclist cites him for having slick tires the NC legislature to authorize the corn- and if the mission I i i "There were numerous allegations be I ucky fore the committee that investigative catches him grand juries were very subject to abuses with an ille- oded especially harassment" said Burley gal weapon Mitchell director of the NC Department 1401m 404491 of Crime Control and Public Safety drugs low- "The final conclusion was that we The police were not yet to the point in North Caro- of (t 2' to accept the negatives In New York It most outlaw 4 or New Jersey where there is a lot of are organized crime it would be a very good replete with thing But our folks just shied away from petty ar- it at this time" rests includ- 41 Second and more Importantly Edmis- i a tti ten said he would like to add five investi- a a gators to the six member special opera- thrown out tions division of the State Bureau of when they Investigation and make the SBI the "rat to court Harold Dean Check lying point" for a statewide task force The rec- composed of federal state and local in- ord of Harold Dean Cheek who police vestigators records indicate is the leader of the With participation by the SI31 and the Winston-Salem chapter of the Hells An- NC Highway Patrol the task force could gels is a case in point cross city and county lines that now At last count in June Cheek had been serve as barriers to law enforcement arrested 54 times Most charges were for Federal participation would give the traffic violations though they included group the power to tap telephone lines one charge of assault with a deadly and protect witnesses by giving them weapon and several of storebreaking new identities Police Check License jobs and other amenities The Charleston chapter of the Hell's Angels maintains three safe houses in the middle-class Woodside Manor area north of the city according to federal officials and local police Some bikers who faced criminal charges in the Carolinas have eluded police for months or years Typical is the case of Artie Ray Cherry a former Green Beret who police say is a member of the Charleston Hell's Angels chapter He was charged with murder in the October 1979 stabbing death of a 26- year-old man in Charleston's Nashville East Club The man -1ATt- f'1" died Oct 17 and the next k7: day federal 'z' authorities raided Cher- 001101ir ry's home on 1 $4401k an unrelated weapons 1)1 ch Police arge ft'k say '4V Cherry pro- It duced a driver's li- 4 4 cense identi- 447: fying him as "Vincent Mar Guinta" and A rtie ed i ded ide i ded ided crimes police gather much of their intelligence from a distance staking out in woods near clubhouses jotting down license numbers or trying to cultivate sources on the periphery of the gangs These are indirect means of gathering solid information The big breaks usually come when gang members give police inside information usually to bargain themselves out of trouble A 45-page secret report on the Hell's Angels compiled by the ATP in November 1980 is based on information from one such source The source opened a window into a sophisticated disciplined world of terror and violence He told them of 40 killings committed by the gang and of arsenals in Mecklenburg County and New York City Police were shocked by how little they had previously known "I have no love for them but I have a healthy respect for them" one investigator said after reading the report "They have the potential of doing anything and their organization and intelligence win put any police department to shame bar none" According to the source each chapter of the Hell's Angels has a security officer who constantly collects and updates data on local law enforcement officers and other "enemies" The security officer's files often include such detailed information as police officers' home addresses and the weapons and methods they favor The report also reveals a security system used by the Hell's Angels to conduct secret business by phone When gang members have illegal business to discuss they resort to the so-called RATS System which means "receiver adds transmitter subtracts" If the word "rat" is ever mentioned in a phone conversation between Angels it is always in connection with a number as in "I killed two rats today" Later the number of a 'safe phone" Is given where the sensitive business can be discussed without fear of wiretaps The person transmitting the phone number subtracts the number "two" from each digit to disguise the "safe" number The receiver adds two Facing such sophistication many police biker experts are not optimistic about curbing the gang influence in the Caron "Win? No way we're going to win" said one Charlotte police officer "Not until we start taking them a lot more seriously" Edmisten said was the first step toward such a task force Attending that meeting along with of- ficers from nine city and county police agencies were representatives from the federal Drug Enforcement Administracause tion ATF the FBI and such state agentates cies as the SBI Alcohol Law Enforce- ment the NC and Virginia highway patrols and the licensing and theft section of the NC Department of Motor Vehi- des Some of the agencies that participated in the first meeting have privately crit icized Edmisten for not following up more quickly "That man is in a position to do some-officer thing" said one police officer who at-resignation tended the meeting "We're not talking politics we're talking survival" Edmisten said he hasn't called a second meeting because of vacancies expected in the US attorneys' offices political apInvestigative pointments the Reagan administration is expected to make sometime in Septemering her "I didn't want to lose momentum" Ed misten said "In this business it's very hard to start over again" There are three principal reasons for a statewide effort: Because city police are better equipped than their rural counterparts to gather intelligence the gangs tend to gravitate to small towns or rural areas where a handful of officers must handle everything from school crossings to horn- icicles The Charlotte chapters of the Outlaws and the Heirs Angels have moved outside the city limits within the past year The Outlaws moved from West Boulerecords yard to a clubhouse on Howard Street in northeast Mecklenburg County The An-bikers gels moved from Rozzelle's Ferry Road to Marshville a Union County town with six full-time police officers The gangs know police boundaries well enough to settle down near county or state borders where jurisdictions are blurred The Pagans Motorcycle Club for in-get stance has five large chapters just north of the Virginia state line The clubhouse of the Winston-Salem Hell's Angels sits 200 feet outside the city limits Bikers are adept at disguising where they are and what they're up to Networks of so-called safe houses dot the Carolinas serving as places where bikers can hide Once underground fugitives roam from safe house to safe house where the i But if the 40-year-old Cheek has spent The meeting in Greensboro last Sept 3 host chapters provide new identities new 1 arrest When local police arrived later to serve a murder warrant on him Cherry was gone Police informants have reported seeing Cherry in Fayetteville and Charlotte earlier this year clean-shaven short-haired and dressed in a three-piece suit Motorcycle outlaws tend to limit their official dealings with society They disdain the use of legal names and are often known even to each other only by nicknames like "Gunner" "Gorilla" "The Butcher" and "Billy One-Eye" Their women carry the burdens of identity the motorcycle or automobile registrations the signatures on leases and pistol permits anything that would provide police with a paper trail The Charlotte Outlaws for instance purchased their new clubhouse at 5420 Howard St in north Mecklenburg March 10 in the name of Nancy Winecoff sister of Outlaw Robert David "Fingers" Winecoff Because Infiltrating a club could mean an officer would be required to commit It 1 1 I.