
Highway 27 overpass around 12:15 a.m Friday.ĭonavan was riding his motorcycle with his 33-year-old girlfriend on the back.ĭeputies say they believe Donovan opened fire on a rival biker gang called "Thug Riders" after they passed him on the highway.ĭonovan struck one of the Thug Riders in the back. The incident occurred on the eastbound lanes of I-4, near the U.S. "If I was in the intelligence community right now, I’ll be looking for informants to try to get my finger on the pulse to see if there’s any retaliation being planned," Copenhaver said. Law enforcement experts say biker gangs that veer toward illegal activity are well known to authorities like any other street gang.
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"In this case, it was my understanding that both bikers were wearing their colors, which means a patch jacket signifying a gang that they're in." They have turf and territory," said former law enforcement detective James Copenhaver.

"These bikers are prevalent like any other gang. "A majority of your riders, including your three patch wearers, are people who just enjoy riding together, who look for brotherhood and sisterhood and camaraderie, and enjoy being out there," Wilde said.įOX 35 went to Donovan’s last known address in Cocoa Beach for comment on his arrest but no one at home came to the door. He says what happened on I-4 that morning is not indicative of the biker community. It's a group that bikers who bring awareness to charity causes. Wilde is a part of the I-4 Riders of Central Florida. "It definitely gives me the wrong impression of what most of the motorcycle community is about," said Jay Wilde. They never expected things to turn out like this. Those who say they knew Donovan growing up say he came from a good home and that his mom was no-nonsense. He recently served two years of probation for a DUI that occurred back in 2017.

Most of his past is littered with minor or criminal traffic violations. RELATED: Woman dies following motorcycle gang shootout on I-4ĭonovan will add felony second-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, tampering with evidence, two counts of resisting with violence, and two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer to his long criminal record. "We had bullet casings from three different firearms scattered over half-mile," Judd said. The gang was the focal point of a 2019 Amazon Prime documentary. Below are the most dangerous outfits operating in America today.Deputies said the man is Ronald Donovan, 38, who has affiliation to the infamous Sin City Disciples biker gang. Regardless of arrests and outright takedowns, it’s clear that biker gangs are alive and well. Other incidents-like a 2015 gun battle involving hundreds of bikers at a restaurant in Waco, Texas, in which nine people were killed and 18 injured-are reminders that the gangs are both ruthless and here to stay. It took place at one of the gangs’ clubhouses. And a biker brawl in Massachusets involving dozens of people left seven people injured in May 2022.


Reports circulating in March 2022 claimed that the same Pagans gang was expanding its base of operations to New York City as well, despite 20 members being arrested and pleading guilty to racketeering charges. In fact, two high-ranking members of the Pagans were recently hit with federal charges for allegedly beating a man they thought was aligned with Hells Angels. Along with the Hells Angels, gangs like the Mongols, Pagans, and Bandidos are active to this day.
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Thompson’s book Hell’s Angels brought the gangs’ ruthless behavior to light, and the popular TV show Sons of Anarchy rekindled America’s interest in the subculture. “One-percenter” motorcycle clubs-so named because the American Motorcyclist Association has said that 99 percent of motorcyclists are law-abiding-run drugs across the borders and participate in a litany of additional crimes, from contract killing to petty theft.īecause of their prominent role in the American underworld, outlaw bikers have long been mythologized in film, TV, and literature. Today, these dangerous organizations are engaged in criminal activities on both coasts and throughout the American heartland. Outlaw motorcycle gangs have been a thorn in the side of US law enforcement since the 1960s.
