Mr. Santillan holding a photo of himself with fellow Mongols members. Hopefully it will go back internally and people can worry about the profiling and patch case. Now the Mongols want a new trial and say their former president, David Santillan, was a confidential informant for the ATF. He cant protect me, he told me, so we have to have an exit strategy, he told me, an apparently agitated Mr. Santillan said to her. In other words, she wrote, he is a rat.. A petition for a new trial and reversal of the half-million-dollar fine, which is scheduled for an initial hearing on Monday in the U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, Calif., claims that Mr. Santillan, 52, covertly cooperated for years with a special agent from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The group has about 1,200 members in the United States, most of them Hispanic, and numerous chapters around the world. The Mongols are now claiming that throughout their attempt to defend the club in the long-running criminal case, their own leader was secretly talking to the government. John looked out not just for me but the club, Mr. Santillan said. The Mongols have been fixtures on the biker scene since 1969, when the club was founded in Montebello, Calif. David Santillan, the president of the Mongols, was ousted by the group after a video surfaced that implied he was being protected by a federal agent. Clubs used to represent more than territory, it was about freedom and doing what you wanted. Representatives from several local law enforcement departments also said they had no such records. Mr. Ciccone, who retired last year, testified that Mr. Santillan never served as an informant for the agency, nor did he pass on any defense information during the trial. The president of the notorious Mongols motorcycle club promised he'd put his infidelities behind him, get sober and be a better father to their children. LIL DAVE WAS COMPROMISED AFRAID AND TURNED ON HIS CLUB. Club attorneys are seeking a new trial, alleging that former Mongols President David Santillan was secretly a government "rat" who served as a confidential informant for a then-agent with the . SANTA ANA, Calif. After federal prosecutors won a landmark racketeering conviction against the Mongols motorcycle club, in an attempt to put an end to the outlaw groups long record of murder, attempted murder and drug dealing, the Mongols countered with an unusual claim: Their leader, they said, had been secretly helping the government in its efforts to bring down the organization. Former Mongols President David Santillan continued to testify. In this Oct. 21, 2008 file photo a Mongols' motorcycle gang member vest is displayed during a news conference in Los Angeles. The ultimate implications for society are paramount here, he said. For more than two decades, federal law enforcement authorities pursued the Mongols, a notorious motorcycle club whose members had a long history of murder, assault, drug dealing and robbery. SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- Testimony resumed inside an Orange County federal courthouse on Wednesday morning for a hearing in which a judge will decide if the Mongols Motorcycle Club will get a new trial after being convicted of conspiracy and racketeering in 2018. In the video, Ms. Santillan was talking to her husband on speakerphone when he told her that Mr. Ciccone was retiring. Chunks of flesh and trails of blood were flying everywhere as he took full swings at attacker after attacker. Mongols biker club is denied new racketeering trial after claims its leader was informant Mongols members walk over the 6th Street Viaduct in Los Angeles. But then he began to talk about now-retired ATF agent John Ciccone, the lead agent on the racketeering case. Prosecutors convinced a jury in California that these crimes were not just the result of individual bikers behaving badly, but the work of an organized criminal enterprise that had participated in a campaign of mayhem. The #1 Biker News Website Since 2011-Covering up to minute biker news including Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs & Biker News Worldwide. If youre going to listen to a dude that does nothing but market gimmicks AKA CULTURE VULTURE, on YouTube, part of the scene with no time in at all, thats on you. and other law enforcement agencies have long gone after biker organizations by co-opting members as informants and infiltrating the groups with their own undercover agents. U.S. News Mongols Motorcycle Club Says Its Leader Was an Informant Evelyn Blackwell June 5, 2022 7 minutes read For more than two decades, federal law enforcement authorities pursued the Mongols, a notorious motorcycle club whose members had a long history of murder, assault, drug dealing and robbery. For more than two decades, federal law enforcement authorities pursued the Mongols, a notorious motorcycle club whose members had a long history of murder, assault, drug dealing and robbery. The Mongols Motorcycle Club was convicted in late 2018 of racketeering and conspiracy. Clubs used to represent more than territory, it was about freedom and doing what you wanted. Mr. Santillan said he talked with the A.T.F. The club was ordered to pay a $500,000 fine in what prosecutors hoped would be a down payment on putting it out of business. The only thing he is guilty of is talking to John a lot and having some kind of rapport with him, she said in an interview. The original case attracted widespread attention because of the federal governments unusual attempt to force the Mongols to forfeit their rights to the clubs trademarked logo a drawing of a brawny Genghis Khan-like figure riding a chopper while brandishing a sword and thus relinquish a big source of the organizations mystique. Mr. Santillan provided records from the cases to show he had been convicted of offenses including driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident and disturbing the peace, and that he had been arrested, fined and put on probation. The A.T.F. The biker group hopes to set aside a $500,000 racketeering conviction, alleging that its former president cooperated with the government during a trial. Ciccone told him he was retiring. Testimony will help determine if Mongols get new trial. Both Mr. Santillan, a Mongols member for almost 25 years who was voted out of the club in July, and the agent, John Ciccone, who retired in December after 32 years at the A.T.F., deny that Mr. Santillan was acting as an informant during the trial, though Mr. Ciccones sworn declaration does not address whether Mr. Santillan had acted as a confidential informant in the past. Mongols Motorcycle Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murdering President of San Francisco Hells Angels U.S. Attorney's Office May 15, 2012: Northern District of California (415) 436-7200; SAN FRANCISCOChristopher Bryan Ablett, a/k/a "Stoney," a member of the Modesto Chapter of the Mongols outlaw motorcycle gang, was sentenced . agent who infiltrated three biker clubs. The Mongols are relying on an explosive video shared by Mr. Santillans wife, Annie Santillan, who, during a stretch when she was angry with her husband over his infidelity, had her daughter record a conversation in which he appeared to refer to protection he had received from the A.T.F. READ ALSO | Was head of OC biker gang a 'rat'? Both men also rejected the claim that Mr. Santillan had revealed privileged defense information to the government while his motorcycle club was on trial. Mongols attorney Joe Yanny says his clients want their 2018 racketeering conviction thrown out or at the very least a new trial. agent on the case, John Ciccone, sharing inside information about the club in exchange for lighter penalties for various offenses. This is the final statement on this because honestly it's mundane and boring. Testimony will reconvene on Friday, July 22, at 7:30 a.m. LA County sheriff's recruits graduate months after Whittier crash, Highways into the San Bernardino Mountains are closed to drivers, LA County passes motion requiring retrofit of some buildings by 2033. Mr. Santillan said it was ridiculous to think that Mr. Ciccone smoothed things over for him. She also said in a text message to other Mongols, now filed with the court, that her husband had acted for a time as a confidential government informant. He's accused of being a confidential informant and working with the government during the Mongols' trial after his wife,. Annie tells Eyewitness News that her husband was "spinning out of control" and continued to cheat on her after the phone call. The Mongols are relying on an explosive video shared by Mr. Santillans wife, Annie Santillan, who, during a stretch when she was angry with her husband over his infidelity, had her daughter record a conversation in which he appeared to refer to protection he had received from the A.T.F. No one at all can keep blaming LEO (Which I do all the time) when there is gang shit happening all the time. Never in my life have I ever implicated anybody in the club for some kind of nefarious activity. On Thursday, after hearing testimony from more than a dozen witnesses, including from Mr. Santillan himself, over the past several months, Judge David O. Carter of the Federal District Court in Santa Ana, Calif., found that there was no convincing evidence of such a claim and refused to set aside racketeering and conspiracy convictions as well as a penalty of $500,000. The A.T.F. "It was an improper line of communication, particularly for a law enforcement personnel trying to convict an entity of being a criminal organization," Yanny said. Ms. Santillan said that she now felt horrible about disclosing the communications and that her husband was not, in fact, an informant. That is the conviction and fine the Mongols are now trying to have set aside. #MONGOLSMC #LILDAVE #MONGOLSMOTORCYCLECLUBIs Lil Dave from the Mongols innocent?Full Interview American Cholo https://youtu.be/PzmaL8MliAI#LILDAVE#MONGOLSMC#. He and his wife, Annie, were estranged after he had an affair. and other law enforcement agencies have long gone after biker organizations by co-opting members as informants and infiltrating the groups with their own undercover agents. The U.S. Attorney's office asked him whether he is - or ever was - any sort of informant for the ATF or for any state or federal agency. "I've never cooperated in any way, shape or form.". ). The club was ordered to pay a $500,000 fine in what prosecutors hoped would be a down payment on putting it out of business. During the almost 13 years he led the Mongols, Mr. Santillan appeared to steer the organization away from its past recruitment of Mexican criminal gang members and a culture of total underworld activity that the feds feasted on, in terms of prosecutions, said William Dulaney, an expert on motorcycle groups who was formerly an associate professor of national security at the U.S. Air Forces Air Command and Staff College. In another instance, in 2014, Mr. Santillan and his wife got into a brawl with other people at a racetrack, the Mongols filing says. In exchange, the club said in its motion, the agent appears to have spared Mr. Santillan from serious legal consequences for several offenses since 2011. **** IMPORTANT**** Check out the totally redesigned app!! Mongols Motorcycle Club says LIL Dave was an informant as they head back to court June 5, 2022 A new episode of Motorcycle Madhouse with Hollywood & Chinadoll Mon-Fri. Get with the Insanity on all major Podcast Platforms (Photo by The Associated Press). He tells his side of the story in the ongoing drama to clear his name. He was the guy outside all the time providing cover support in case something went wrong with the undercovers.. Prosecutors convinced a jury in California that these crimes were not just the result of individual bikers behaving badly, but the work of an organized criminal enterprise that had participated in a campaign of mayhem. He explained: We wanted them to know we were there monitoring.. "He goes, I know you've been doing a bang-up job at the club, can't protect you from this point forward," Santillan recounted of their conversation. The explosive allegations come after a secretly recorded video surfaced of Santillan talking to his wife about the lead ATF agent on the case -- John Ciccone. "I want Ciccone here under oath," Judge Carter told the prosecution team. But the group that was once the most powerful biker organization in the West other than its archrivals, the Hells Angels, is returning to court next week, hoping to set aside the racketeering and conspiracy convictions based on what it says is new evidence about its previous leader, David Santillan. T wo years after a federal jury deemed the notorious Mongols Motorcycle Club a criminal organization, attorneys for the club are asking a judge for a new trial accusing its former president of . The current national leaders of the Mongols said they were convinced that the clubs former president, who controlled the Mongols defense team, had acted improperly. Mr. Santillan walking into a federal courthouse in Santa Ana, Calif., during the 2018 racketeering trial against the Mongols. The unusual legal imbroglio provides a rare glimpse into the hidden and volatile politics of the outlaw motorcycle club and the degree to which law enforcement and its targets may engage in limited cooperation when it is seen as mutually beneficial. Annie Santillan says she surreptitiously recorded the call because David's mistress had been harassing her. Sherdog.com is a property of Mandatory Media, LLC, monitoring_string = "5200e30beed193e5fe31f8bccc2bdcbf". David Santillan was the president of the Mongols motorcycle club for. On one occasion during the trial, Judge Carter expressed his displeasure to lawyers for both sides after being told by a U.S. Such an order would allow anyone to use the image. Insane Throttle Support Club Become a memberNow, Insane Throttle/Motorcycle Madhouse Radio YouTube and AudioDisclaimer, Meet the Insane Throttle Contributing Columnist James Hollywood Macecari, Motorcycle Clubs Riding Clubs and Associations Near Me Index &Listings, Our Policies here at Insane Throttle Publications. The Mongols Motorcycle Club was convicted in late 2018 of racketeering and conspiracy. The #1 Biker News Website Since 2011-Covering up to minute biker news including Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs & Biker News Worldwide. Eyewitness News has obtained the video that was recorded in June of 2021 when David Santillan was drunk and despondent. Insane Throttle Support Club Become a memberNow, Insane Throttle/Motorcycle Madhouse Radio YouTube and AudioDisclaimer, Meet the Insane Throttle Contributing Columnist James Hollywood Macecari, Motorcycle Clubs Riding Clubs and Associations Near Me Index &Listings, Our Policies here at Insane Throttle Publications. The club was ordered to pay a $500,000 fine in what prosecutors hoped would be a down payment on putting it out of business. Mr. Dulaney said that Mr. Santillan instituted new policies, like no more club-driven drug business, and made it mandatory that members had to have a motorcycle and things like a valid drivers license and registration and a job.. Two years after a federal jury deemed the notorious Mongols Motorcycle Club a criminal organization, attorneys for the club are asking a judge for a new trial accusing its former president of. Former Mongols Biker Club Leader Denies He Was Ever a Rat The Mongols Motorcycle Club allege that their former president David Santillan was a confidential informant during their RICO. Now the Mongols want a new trial and say their former president was a confidential informant for the ATF. Marshal that Mr. Santillan and Mr. Ciccone had been seen chatting at a Starbucks near the courthouse. These registrations are something that need to be examined by the circuit, maybe the Supreme Court.. ", RELATED: Racketeering verdict in OC might force Mongols biker club to lose logo. More Episodes. In court Monday, prosecutors told Judge David O. Carter that retired ATF agent Ciccone will testify that Santillan was never an informant. Anyone can read what you share. Both Mr. Ciccone and the U.S. Attorneys Office declined to comment on the motion beyond the government response filed in court, which said the petition for a new trial was replete with false and unsupported allegations and speculation.. After testifying briefly in court Monday, Annie told Eyewitness News that her husband has never been a confidential informant and that she only sent the text message because she wanted to destroy him in the eyes of the Mongols. During the call, Santillan is heard talking about John Cicconne, the lead ATF agent on the case. Mr. Santillan said it was ridiculous to think that Mr. Ciccone smoothed things over for him. Just my thought as I have no horse in this race, Insane Throttle Support Club Become a member Now, Insane Throttle/Motorcycle Madhouse Radio YouTube and Audio Disclaimer, Meet the Insane Throttle Contributing Columnist James Hollywood Macecari, Motorcycle Clubs Riding Clubs and Associations Near Me Index & Listings, Our Policies here at Insane Throttle Publications. agent. The Mongols Motorcycle Club was convicted in late 2018 of racketeering and conspiracy. You can now listen to full episodes of the podcast right from the app. "John told me that I have one year, one year," Santillan says in the call. Santillan says he ran into Ciccone when he went to pick up some Mongols property that had been released after the trial. Federal prosecutors have been focusing on the Mongols logo since 2008. Santillan says he and Ciccone had a "rapport" after 25 years of dealing with one another. The government has filed a separate appeal on that issue, seeking a narrower forfeiture order that would take away the clubs right to trademark exclusivity over the logo. Thats what I meant by protect in the video.. "I love you, I love you," David Santillan says in the call. He also denied that he ever helped Mr. Santillan win lenient treatment in his brushes with the law, which included a crash in his Mercedes five years ago while driving impaired. David Santillan tells Eyewitness News that he was in a "really bad place" when the video was recorded and that he's never been disloyal to the Mongols. Michael Tyrone Delaney for The New York Times. The Mongols claimed in their motion for a new trial that Mr. Santillan had an inappropriate working relationship over the years with the lead A.T.F.