BIKER NEWS: Bandidos biker gang leader charged with racketeering, drug distribution free on bond

BIKER NEWS - HOUSTON — The national president of the Bandidos biker gang, who faces life in prison if convicted on racketeering, drug distribution and other charges, has been freed on $250,000 bond.

Jeffrey Pike of Conroe was released Monday following a detention hearing in Houston.

Pike and other Bandidos leaders were arrested last week in an investigation into racketeering, extortion, drug trafficking, murder and other violent crimes.

Attorneys for the 60-year-old Pike say he’s no threat to the community. Several defense witnesses testified that they did not believe Pike would flee if granted bond.

Federal authorities accuse the Bandidos of waging a deadly “war” on the rival Cossacks biker gang. That rivalry entered the spotlight last May, when a shootout between police and bikers in Waco, Texas, left nine people dead.

This article was first published on Thursday, January 14, 2016

Get a copy of The Dallas News or go to dallasnews.com for more stories.