George Wegers was the International President (El Presidente) of Bandidos MC from 1998 until 2005.
George Wegers Early Life / Family Life
George Wegers was born in Whatcom County in Washington State around 1953. He had a passion for motorcycles from a very young age, possibly spurred on by a Harley Davidson motorcycle owned by one of his neighbours that he used to see parked out the front.
He owned a Harley Davidson motorcycle shop in Bellingham, Washington State.
George Wegers Bandidos MC
In 1998 George Wegers became the International President of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, Jeff Pike was the Vice President for much of this time.
As part of his role as the Bandidos International President, or “El Preisdente”, as it is often referred to within the Bandidos, he decided to move the club’s headquarters from Texas to Bellingham, Washington, although the Bandidos will always be considered as a Texas outlaw motorcycle club.
In Edward Winterhalder’s book, Out in Bad Standings (see the books section at the bottom of this article), he makes mention that Wegers was changing the direction of the club and had a heavy influence on how each of the individual chapters were run.
His preference was also to slow down expansion, particularly internationally. Wegers had no desire to flood the clubhouses with newly patched members just to boost the motorcycle club’s membership. He was a fan of keeping the club out of the media, laying a low profile.
Jeff Pike replaced George Wegers as the Bandidos International President in 2005 after George was sent to prison on RICO charges. See the “Crime / In The Media” section below for further information.
George Wegers is now retired from the outlaw motorcycle club. He suffered spinal injuries from a motorcycle crash when he exiting Interstate 5 in Skagit County, Washington State in 2010.
George Wegers Crimes / In The Media
2005 – June, 2005. A two year law enforcement investigation leads to the arrest of George Wegers and 25 other Bandidos members and associates. Nineteen search warrants were executed. Two fo the search warrants were for properties owned by George Wegers which resulted in 4 handguns and 33 knives being found.
Charges for the 26 people include:
- Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering: Kidnaping (VICAR)
- Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering – Assault
- Conspiracy to Tamper with a Witness
- Tampering with a Witness
- Conspiracy to Distribute Marijuana and Methamphetamine
- Distribution of Marijuana
- Distribution of Methamphetamine
- Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime
- Conspiracy to Traffic in Certain Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Parts
- Trafficking in Certain Motor Vehicle
- Sale of a Firearm to Prohibited Person
- Felon in Possession of Firearm
As part of the investigation law enforcement placed wire taps on his phone, where he was said to have told Christopher Horlock, the Bandidos National Secretary that he was not to talk with federal agents.
2006 – October, 2006. George Wegers pleads guilty to racketeering charges, in exchange for 14 other charges against him being dropped. As part of the deal it was agreed that he would serve up to 20 months in prison. This is significantly less time than the 20 years that the federal sentencing guidelines could have seen him facing. As part of the case he admitted that he, along with other members, conspired to tamper with witnesses, traffic stolen motorcycles as well as conspire to commit other crimes.
George Wegers Books / TV / Media
Bandidos Book – Out in Bad Standings: Inside The Bandidos Motorcycle Club – The Making Of A Worldwide Dynasty by Edward Winterhalder.
Edward Winterhalder was the Founder and President of the Oklahoma chapter of the Bandidos, but decided to leave the club in 2003 as he was not happy with the direction that they were heading. In 2003 George Wegers had just come in as the Bandidos International President and there are mentions in the book about the control that Wegers attempted to place over how each of the chapters was run, however the author states that he mainly wanted to leave the club to look after his family and business. Edward Winterhalder’s status was changed to “Out in Bad Standings” by the Bandidos.
It is worth noting that paperback/hardback version of this book has been split into two parts for the Kindle, which just makes things confusing! View Part 1, View Part 2 (links open in a new tab).
Bandidos Book – The Fat Mexican: The Bloody Rise of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club by Alex Caine.
While there are no books specifically written about George Wegers, this following book details the rise of the Bandidos, written by Alex Caine who was able to infiltrate the club for 3 years. Find out more on Amazon (link opens in a new tab).
Read More:
- List of One Percenter Motorcycle Clubs
- Bandidos MC
- Anthony Snodgrass Spencer (Bandidos Australia President)
- Jeff Pike (Bandidos International President)
- Famous Bandidos Members
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