4th Solano Hells Angels member indicted
A federal grand jury in Sacramento returned a onecount indictment Thursday against a 55-year-old Vacaville man who is a member of the Hells Angels, charging him with being a felon in possession of ammunition, a U.S. Attorney said.
Kenneth Caspers Jr. is the fourth person to be indicted in the Department of Justice's Eastern District of California based on an investigation into a brutal beating at the clubhouse for the Vallejo chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. The other three — Jaime Alvarez of Vallejo, Dennis Killough Jr. of Vacaville, and Michael Mahoney of Fairfield — were indicted by a grand jury in 2022.
According to court documents, in October 2021, two victims — both members of a different motorcycle club considered a “puppet,” or subordinate, club of the Hells Angels — were beaten by Caspers, Mahoney, Alvarez, Killough, and other club members based on perceived infractions of the Hells Angels' rules, Phillip A. Talbert, the U.S. Attorney, said in a press release.
According to court documents, on Dec. 8, 2021, law enforcement officers, carrying out a search warrant at Caspers' Vacaville home, found several firearms and ammunition, including 18 rounds of .22-caliber, .25-caliber, and/or .38-caliber ammunition in Caspers' master bedroom and bathroom. Caspers has previously been convicted of several felony crimes — including a previous felony conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm — that prevent him from possessing firearms or ammunition, noted Talbert.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron D. Pennekamp and Jason Hitt lead the prosecution.
If convicted, Caspers faces a maximum prison term of 10 years and a $250,000 fine. Any punishment would be determined by the court and federal sentencing guidelines.
The case, part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, stems from an investigation by the Solano County District Attorney's Office, the Solano County Sheriff's Office, the Vacaville, Vallejo and Fairfield police departments, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The three other defendants, each previously convicted felons, have pleaded guilty to weapons charges and are scheduled to be sentenced as follows: Alvarez on March 7, Killough on March 27, and Mahoney on May 2. They all face a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a $250,000 fine.