Fourteen members of the Bandidos motorcycle gang have been indicted in the Southern District of Texas. The charges include racketeering, assault, and murder, according to a U.S. Department of Justice press release.
The indictment, related to violent crimes in the Houston area, was handed down on Tuesday last week but was made public this week. The accused appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Hanovice Palermo, with some expected on Monday afternoon. The Bandidos are described as an "outlaw" motorcycle gang with 1,500 to 2,000 members in the U.S. and up to 1,500 internationally, including Mexico, as per the same release.
The indictment follows a violent turf war between the Bandidos and a rival gang named B*EAST, which began in 2019. The conflict involved gunfire, assault threats, and murder. As mentioned in the release, the Bandidos' national leadership reportedly issued a "smash on site" order against their rivals, escalating the violence.
Key figures in the indictment include John M. Pfeffer aka Big John, Darvi Hinojosa aka 10 Round, and Bradley Rickenbacker aka Dolla Bill. They face charges that could lead to life imprisonment. David Vargas aka Brake Check faces charges related to the killing of a rival gang member, which carries a mandatory life sentence or the death penalty.
The investigation is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) initiative, which aims to combat high-level criminal threats. The OCDETF program uses a multi-agency approach to dismantle organized crime and drug trafficking networks.
The case is also part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal strategy to reduce violent crime. The PSN program collaborates with community leaders and law enforcement to address violent crime issues. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Byron H. Black and Kelly Zenón-Matos, along with Trial Attorneys Grace H. Bowen and Christopher Taylor, are leading the prosecution of the case.
