BIKER NEWS: Bandidos clashed with 'several' bikers leading up to Twin Peaks melee

BN- The bloody brawl in Waco that left nine bikers dead came amid a territorial clash between the Bandidos Motorcycle Club and "several other groups," most notably the Cossacks, contends a new gang report.

While the details of the May melee are still being investigated, the Cossacks had been defying the Bandidos, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety's 2015 Texas Gang Threat Assessment.

All of the 177 people who were arrested in Waco are charged with engaging in organized crime. They are accused of being part of a conspiracy to commit assault and murder as part of the clash between the two groups.

"Cossacks members have recently started wearing the Texas patch on the bottom of their vests without the approval of the Bandidos," notes the report, which was released Monday. "Traditionally, the Bandidos have been the dominant motorcycle club in Texas, and thus no other club is allowed to wear the Texas patch without their consent."

Wearing such a patch is like proclaiming the state as territory.

"The incident in Waco was preceded by a series of violent incidents reportedly associated with the Bandidos," according to the report. "The majority of these incidents occurred in the northern half of the state."

Like the Bandidos, the Cossacks have roots going back to the 1960s.

But while the Bandidos have been on the radar of law enforcement for years, it took the Waco clash for the Cossacks to make their debut in the annual DPS report.

In the motorcycle world, the Bandidos are considered to be on par with the Hell's Angels. The DPS classifies them alongside the Bloods, Crips and the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas.

"This conflict and the violent incident in Waco highlight the public safety threat posed by gangs and gang rivalries," the report states. "Law enforcement continues to monitor the conflict involving these groups due to the potential for additional violence or further escalations."

Members of the Cossacks as well as members of the Bandidos take exception to being called gangsters and have said they are unfairly given the label by law enforcement.

There are about 100,000 gang members in the state, according to the report, but no groups considered by DPS to be gangs have drawn such attention in recent months.

The DPS contends that the gangs posing the greatest threat to the state include Tango Blast, Texas Mexican Mafia, Texas Syndicate, MS-13 and Latin Kings.

They are seen as especially strong because of their ties to Mexican drug cartels, statewide presence and propensity for violence, according to the report.

"Our residents have a right to live free from fear and crime, and DPS remains steadfast in our mission to identify, dismantle and disrupt these criminal organizations," DPS Director Steven McCraw said in a prepared statement.

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