Waco Biker Shooting

Waco Biker Shooting refers to the shootout on 17 May, 2015 at a Twin Peaks Restaurant in Waco, Texas involving multiple motorcycle clubs including Bandidos MC and Cossacks MC.

Waco Biker Shooting Motorcycle Clubs Involved

The following motorcycle clubs were in attendance at the Twin Peaks restaurant at the time of the shooting, although only a few were involved in the shooting:

• Bandidos MC
• Blackett Arms MC
• Bogatyrs MC (Cossacks ally)
• Boozefighters MC
• Caballeros MC
• Cossacks MC
• Desgraciados MC
• Escondidos MC
• Gypsy MC
• HonorBound Motorcycle Ministry
• In Country MC
• Leathernecks MC
• Legacy Vets MC
• Los Pirados MC
• Machateros MC
• Renatus MC
• Scimitars MC (Cossacks ally)
• Sons of the South MC
• Tornado MC
• Valerosos MC (Bandidos Support Club)
• Vaqueros MC (Bandidos Support Club)
• Vietnam Vets MC

Waco Biker Shooting Earlier Tensions

Tensions between the Bandidos and Cossacks had been escalating over previous months:

2013 – November, 2013. Bandidos stab 2 Cossacks.

2015 – 22 March, 2015. 10 members of the Cossacks MC force a Bandidos MC member from the road and beat him.

2015 – 22 March, 2015. A group of Bandidos MC members, or possibly a Bandidos support club, confront a single Cossack member and attack him.

2015 – 7 April, 2015. The El Paso FBI department are tipped off that 100 Bandidos members are expected to travel to Odessa, Texas to start a war with the Cossacks.

2015 – 9 April, 2015. The San Antonio FBI department are told to keep an eye out for any issues between the Bandidos and Cossacks at the biker rallies held in the Texas towns of Amarillo, Hondo, Midland and Odessa.

2015 – 24 April, 2015. The Dallas FBI department release a report detailing 3 fights between the Cossacks and Bandidos in the Texas towns of Longview, Kilgore and Quitman.

Waco Biker Shooting Timeline of Events

The Twin Peaks restaurant just off the Jack Kultgen Expressway in Waco, Texas, was the host of the Texas Confederation of Clubs and Independents meeting for Region 1 (a confederation involved in promoting biker rights and safety). The meeting was scheduled for 1-2pm. The restaurant had hosted this event numerous times without incident. The meeting was scheduled for 1pm.

It should be noted that Cossacks Motorcycle Club are not a member of the Texas Confederation of Clubs, so were not invited to the meeting.

Possible Scenario #1: The car spot.

• Members of Bogatyrs MC, Cossacks MC and Scimitars MC arrive well before the scheduled 1pm meeting start time, they mainly sit in the outside patio area.

• A Bandido nearly hits a Cossack with his motorcycle, possibly a Cossack Prospect who was keeping watch over the Cossacks bikes. Other reports say that he did in fact run over his foot and that he fell to the ground.

• Cossacks approach the Bandidos and begin arguing.

• A Bandido hits Cossack Ray Nelson Jr. in the face.

• Weapons are then used by both sides. Cossack Ray Nelson Jr. is shot in the neck, however not fatally wounded.

• At some point police officers also began firing.

Possible Scenario #2: The bathroom shove.

• At least 22 police including 10 SWAT officers are outside of the restaurant in the carpark.

• There is some push and shove in the bathroom of the Twin Peaks restaurant, which then spills out to the carpark. Mainly Bandidos MC, Cossacks MC and Scimitars MC are involved.

• The push and shove turns into a knife fight and multiple men are stabbed.

• A gun is drawn by one of those in the fight.

• This is where statements differ: Police see the gun and begun firing automatic weapons and that all those killed were the victims of the police.

Aftermath

• 9 are killed.
• 18 are wounded.
• A total of 44 shell casings were found at the scene.
• 239 are detained at the Twin Peaks scene and the Waco Convention Center.
• 62 of the 239 are released without charge.
• 177 of the 239 are charged (see “Arrests” further down in this article).
• Over 1000 items of evidence are taken such as weapons, cell phones and clothing.
• 130 motorcycles and 91 other vehicles were held for evidence on the day.
• As at June 12, 2015, 475 weapons had been found at the scene and seized by police. Some weapons had been buried in garden beds which were discovered by police after using a metal detector:
  • 151 firearms (including 12 long guns)
  • Knives
  • Brass knuckles
  • Batons
  • Tomahawks
  • Weighted weapons
  • A hatchet
  • Stun guns
  • Bats
  • Clubs
  • A machete
  • A pipe
  • An ax
  • Pepper spray
  • A chain

Waco Biker Shooting Victims

Following are the nine victims of the shootout:

Cossacks MC Victims

• Charles Wayne “Dog” Russell: Age 46. Shot in the chest.
• Daniel Raymond “Diesel” Boyett: Age 44. Shot in the head. Regional Road Captain.
• Jacob Lee Rhyne: Age 39. Shot in the neck.
• Matthew Mark Smith: Age 27. Was previously a member of the Scimitars MC Parker County chapter. Shot in the torso.
• Richard Matthew “Chain” Jordan, III: Age 31. Shot in the head.
• Richard Vincent “Bear” Kirschner, Jr: Age 47. Sergeant-At-Arms.
• Wayne Lee “Sidetrack” Campbell: Age 43. Shot in the head and trunk. Road Captain.

Bandido MC Victim

• Manuel Rodriguez: Age 40.

Other Victim

• Jesus Delgado Rodriguez: Age 65. Vietnam veteran who was awarded the Purple Heart. An associate of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club. Shot in the head and torso.

Waco Biker Shooting Motives

As could be expected, media speculation ran rampant with ideas on what the motives behind the shooting may have been.

• Several publications listed that the shooting began over a parking spot. Maybe there was some sort of issue with a parking spot on the day, however it is safe to say that a parking spot would not be the main reason for two groups to begin shooting at each other. This suggested motive also ignores the other encounters between the groups in the preceding months.
• The Cossacks in recent years have begun wearing the “Texas” bottom rocker. The territory of Texas has traditionally been captured by the Bandidos. The Cossacks refused to pay their dues to the Bandidos for “allowing” them to wear the rocker. In addition, it is believed that multiple existing out-of-state Cossacks members transferred to Texas chapters to boost Cossack numbers.
• Rumours of the Cossacks forming an alliance with the Hells Angels MC, who are a long term enemy of the Bandidos.
• Some groups have suggested that the shooting was set up by the Police and that the Waco Police Department were well aware of the event, as well as the rising tensions between the Bandidos and Cossacks. Police were ready to quickly respond with firepower as soon as the first violence broke out between the two motorcycle clubs.

Waco Biker Shooting Police Involvement

On the day of the event multiple Police officers were witnessed firing weapons, a fact which was confirmed by police. The exact actions that they took on the day are under question.

Multiple witnesses have stated that the majority of the shooting was done by the police.

Statements made by police about the Waco shootout event have also varied.

• Incident Report – Officer George Vrail: Officer George Vrail was providing a special detail to cover the meeting, he stated in an incident report that an officer involved in the shootout approached him after the event to advise that he and his colleague were engaged by gunfire as they were exiting their vehicle and returned fire and that they had “struck multiple suspects with their patrol rifles”.

• Incident Report – Officer Keith Vaughn: Officer Keith Vaughn’s statement included that an officer spotted a man shooting into the crowd, so he fired one shot to “stop the individual from shooting anyone else”.

• May 18, 2015: Sgt Patrick Swanton, a spokesperson for the Waco Police Department states the following:
  • “There were multiple people on the scene firing weapons at each other”
  • “They then turned on our officers. Our officers returned gunfire, wounding and possibly killing several.”

• June 12, 2015: Waco Police Chief Brent Stroman states the following:
  • 3 police officers fired a total of 12 shots from rifles.
  • The 3 officers fired .223 caliber rifles, using semi-automatic mode only, although they are capable of fully automatic firing.
  • No other law enforcement agencies fired any shots.
  • No confirmation as to whether or not the 12 bullets hit anyone.
  • All officers on the scene were inside their vehicles when the first shots were fired at Twin Peaks.

Waco Biker Shooting Arrests and Protests

177 people were initially arrested, a number which was reduced to 170, taken to the Waco Convention Center for processing and placed on $1 million bonds. Only three people were known to have posted the $1 million bond, the Bandidos Dallas President David Martinez, Christopher Stainton and Bandido Jeff Battey.

Many of those arrested were initially told that they were being taken to the Waco Convention Center to provide witness statements, rather than that they were being arrested. The officers who provided this information may have believed that this was the truth at the time and that the decision to make the arrests was only properly communicated by the District Attorney to all involved once they arrived at the Waco Convention Center.

Hearings were required to negotiate the reduction of bonds payable by most on the arrest list. Many bonds were reduced to between $25,000 and $100,000, however each of these required a hearing.

By early June, 2 weeks after the event, only 25 people had been released.

Below is a list of those arrested as a result of the Waco shootout:

• Aaron Carpenter
• Andres Ramirez
• Andrew Sandoval
• Andrew Stroer
• Anthony Palmer
• Ares Phoinix
• Arley Harris
• Benjamin Matcek
• Berton Bergman
• Billy Mcree
• Blake Taylor
• Bobby Samford
• Bohar Crump
• Bradley Terwilliger
• Brian Brincks
• Brian Eickenhorst
• Brian Logan
• Christian Valencia
• Christopher Carrizal
• Christopher Eaton
• Christopher Rogers
• Christopher Stainton
• Clayton Reed
• Colter Bajovich
• Craig Rodah
• Daniel Johnson
• Daniel Pesina
• Daryle Walker
• David Cepeda
• David Martinez
• David Rasor
• Diego Obledo
• Don Fowler
• Doss Murphy
• Drew King
• Dustin McCann
• Dusty O’Ehlert
• Edgar Kelleher
• Edward Keller
• Eleazar Martinez
• Eliodoro Munguia
• Ester Weaver
• Gage Yarborough
• George Rogers
• George Wingo
• Gilbert Zamora
• Greg Corrales
• Gregory Salazar
• Jacob Reese
• Jacob Wilson
• James Devoll
• James Eney
• James Gray
• James Rosas
• James Stalling
• James Venable
• Jarrod Lehman
• Jarron Hernandez
• Jason Cavazos
• Jason Dillard
• Jason Moreno
• Jeff Battey
• Jeremy King
• Jeremy Ojeda
• Jerry Pollard
• Jim Harris
• Jimmy Pond
• John Arnold
• John Craft
• John Guerrero
• John Martinez
• John Moya
• John Vensel
• John Wiley
• John Wilson
• Jonathan Lopez
• Jorge Salinas
• Jose Valle
• Joseph Matthews
• Joseph Ortiz
• Josh Martin
• Juan Garcia
• Julie Perkins
• Justin Garcia
• Justin Waddington
• Juventino Montellano
• Kenneth Carlisle
• Kevin Rash
• Kristoffer Rhyne
• Kyle Smith
• Lance Geneva
• Larry Pina
• Lawrence Garcia
• Lawrence Kemp
• Lawrence Yager
• Lindell Copeland
• Marco Dejong
• Marcus Pilkington
• Mario Gonzalez
• Mark White
• Marshall Mitchell
• Martin Lewis
• Matthew Clendennen
• Matthew Folse
• Matthew Yocum
• Melvin Pattenaude
• Michael Baxley
• Michael Chaney
• Michael Herring
• Michael Kenes
• Michael Lynch
• Michael Moore
• Michael Thomas
• Michael Woods
• Mitchell Bradford
• Morgan English
• Narciso Luna
• Nate Farish
• Nathan Champeau
• Nathan Grindstaff
• Noe Adame
• Owen Bartlett
• Owen Reeves
• Phillip Sampson
• Phillip Smith
• Ray Allen
• Raymond Hawes
• Reginald Weathers
• Rene Cavazos
• Richard Benavides
• Richard Cantu
• Richard Dauley
• Richard Donias
• Richard Kreder
• Richard Luther
• Ricky Wycough
• Robert Bucy
• Robert Nichols
• Robert Robertson
• Rolando Reyes
• Ronald Atterbury
• Ronald Warren (wounded)
• Ronnie Bishop
• Roy Covey
• Royce Vanvleck
• Rudy Mercado
• Ryan Craft
• Ryan Harper
• Salvador Campos
• Sandra Lynch
• Sergio Reyes
• Seth Smith
• Seth Smith
• Steven Walker
• Terry Martin
• Theron Rhoten
• Thomas Landers
• Timothy Bayless
• Timothy Satterwhite
• Tom Mendez
• Tommy Jennings
• Trey Short
• Valdemar Guajardo
• Walter Weaver
• Wesley McAlister
• William Aikin
• William English
• William Redding

Waco Biker Shooting Ongoing Investigation and Trial

10 November 2015 – 106 are indicted on charges of “engaging in criminal activity”.

As of February 2016, gag orders have been placed on the cases of some involved. Detailed autopsy results have still not been released, making it unclear whether those killed were by the bullets of pistols (used by bikers), or rifles (mainly used by law enforcement).

Some of the bikers involved in the events on the day have had orders placed against them as a condition of their release which ban them from associating with other bikers. In April 2016 one of those affected, Bandidos member Jeff Battey, requested that this condition of his release be removed, however the request was rejected by the judge.

Waco Biker Shooting Books & Media

Book – The Twin Peaks Ambush: A True Story About The Press, The Police And The Last American Outlaws by Donald Charles Davis a.k.a Aging Rebel.

Find out more on Amazon (link opens in a new tab).

Read More

• List of One Percenter Motorcycle Clubs
• List of Outlaw Motorcycle Club Books
• List of Historic Outlaw Biker Events And Massacres
• Bandidos MC
• Cossacks MC
• Bandidos Shedden Massacre
• Lennoxville Massacre

 

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