CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Four members or associates of the Pagans Motorcycle Club pleaded guilty to various charges in federal court Tuesday, becoming the first of the 55 defendants named in a sweeping, 44-count indictment to admit criminal wrongdoing.
The indictment, unsealed earlier this month, accuses gang members of using violence and intimidation to control a criminal network that stretched from West Virginia to as far as New Jersey and Florida. The gang used a small governing body called the "Mother Club," whose members each oversaw a particular region, to maintain control over the Pagans and other affiliated motorcycle clubs, according to the indictment.
Only one of the four -- William Hankins Sr., 54, of Philadelphia -- was a full-fledged member of the Pagans. Two others, James Edward Lyttle, 55, of Marmet, and his son, Eric Wayne Lyttle, 30, of Charleston, were members of the Last Rebels Motorcycle Club, a so-called "support club" affiliated with the Pagans.
The fourth, Edward Day Parsons, 29, of Scott Depot, admitted he sold cocaine to members of the Pagans.
Hankins, known in the gang as "Wild Bill," admitted that he funneled illegal gambling money to the gang's national president, David "Bart" Barbeito, of Myersville, Md., and vice president, Floyd "Diamond Jess" Moore, of St. Albans.
As the Pagans' President of Presidents, Hankins reported directly to Moore about Pagans' chapters in Philadelphia and New Jersey, according to a stipulation of facts agreed to by Hankins and the government.
"As a member of the [Pagans], periodically Mr. Hankins and others were required to sell raffle tickets for the purported chance to win a motorcycle," the stipulation reads.
In April 2008, Hankins and others named in the indictment traveled from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida and elsewhere to deliver proceeds from the bogus raffles to Moore and on to Barbeito, according to the stipulation.
Eric "Tree" Lyttle admitted that on orders from Moore, he and other members of the Last Rebels went to Boone County to strip members of the Next to Kin, an unaffiliated motorcycle club, of their "colors," as bikers' sleeveless jean jackets with patches are called.
"The Pagans Motorcycle Club was superior to the Last Rebels in the outlaw motorcycle world, and therefore, officers in the [Pagans] could order officers and members of the [Last Rebels] to commit crimes on [their] behalf," Lyttle's stipulation reads. "Moore wanted the Next to Kin motorcycle club shut down because [he] did not believe that they had shown him and the [Pagans] the appropriate respect and did not get 'permission' to become a motorcycle club."
In April 2008, under threat of physical violence, Lyttle and four others, including his father, took jackets from two male and two female members of the Next to Kin, according to the stipulation.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Four members or associates of the Pagans Motorcycle Club pleaded guilty to various charges in federal court Tuesday, becoming the first of the 55 defendants named in a sweeping, 44-count indictment to admit criminal wrongdoing.
The indictment, unsealed earlier this month, accuses gang members of using violence and intimidation to control a criminal network that stretched from West Virginia to as far as New Jersey and Florida. The gang used a small governing body called the "Mother Club," whose members each oversaw a particular region, to maintain control over the Pagans and other affiliated motorcycle clubs, according to the indictment.
Only one of the four -- William Hankins Sr., 54, of Philadelphia -- was a full-fledged member of the Pagans. Two others, James Edward Lyttle, 55, of Marmet, and his son, Eric Wayne Lyttle, 30, of Charleston, were members of the Last Rebels Motorcycle Club, a so-called "support club" affiliated with the Pagans.
The fourth, Edward Day Parsons, 29, of Scott Depot, admitted he sold cocaine to members of the Pagans.
Hankins, known in the gang as "Wild Bill," admitted that he funneled illegal gambling money to the gang's national president, David "Bart" Barbeito, of Myersville, Md., and vice president, Floyd "Diamond Jess" Moore, of St. Albans.
As the Pagans' President of Presidents, Hankins reported directly to Moore about Pagans' chapters in Philadelphia and New Jersey, according to a stipulation of facts agreed to by Hankins and the government.
"As a member of the [Pagans], periodically Mr. Hankins and others were required to sell raffle tickets for the purported chance to win a motorcycle," the stipulation reads.
In April 2008, Hankins and others named in the indictment traveled from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida and elsewhere to deliver proceeds from the bogus raffles to Moore and on to Barbeito, according to the stipulation.
Eric "Tree" Lyttle admitted that on orders from Moore, he and other members of the Last Rebels went to Boone County to strip members of the Next to Kin, an unaffiliated motorcycle club, of their "colors," as bikers' sleeveless jean jackets with patches are called.
"The Pagans Motorcycle Club was superior to the Last Rebels in the outlaw motorcycle world, and therefore, officers in the [Pagans] could order officers and members of the [Last Rebels] to commit crimes on [their] behalf," Lyttle's stipulation reads. "Moore wanted the Next to Kin motorcycle club shut down because [he] did not believe that they had shown him and the [Pagans] the appropriate respect and did not get 'permission' to become a motorcycle club."
In April 2008, under threat of physical violence, Lyttle and four others, including his father, took jackets from two male and two female members of the Next to Kin, according to the stipulation.
James "Big Jim" Lyttle admitted that he carried a gun during the trip to Boone County, and made sure the Next to Kin members knew it.
Parsons, known as "Fat Ed," pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine. He sold between 100 and 200 grams of cocaine to Pagans and Pagans associates between January 2008 and October 2008, according to his stipulation.
In exchange, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steve Loew, Blaire Malkin and Karen Schommer agreed to drop five counts of possession with intent to distribute.
As part of their plea deals, all four defendants agreed to cooperate and provide information to federal investigators.
U.S. District Judge Thomas E. Johnston scheduled all four sentencings for March 2. Hankins and Eric Lyttle face up to five years in prison, and Parsons faces up to 20 years.
James Lyttle faces up to life in prison, with a five-year mandatory prison sentence.
One of the 55 defendants, Charles "Tombstone Charlie" Nichols, died earlier this month while in custody at South Central Regional Jail. Authorities said Nichols died from complications from previous medical conditions.
The allegations against the remaining defendants range from kidnapping and beating a member of the Road Disciples Motorcycle Club in Huntington in 2003 in an attempt to extort money from the smaller club to conspiring with a prison guard to kill an inmate they suspected was providing information to the government.
Barbeito, Moore and three others face racketeering charges.
Reach Andrew Clevenger at acleven...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1723.
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No allegations of Police misconduct against the Pagans?