Authorities Raid Pagan Motorcycle Club Locations in WW, College Place

The Walla Walla County Sheriff's Office announced Friday, Feb. 4th, a series of raids have been made concerning the Pagan Motorcycle Gang presence in the region.

TWO LOCATIONS WERE RAIDED IN WW COUNTY, 2 IN SPOKANE

Thursday, agents from the ATF, Washington State Patrol, WWCSO, and College Place Police served search warrants at the same time at a location in the 1900 block of Melrose Street in Walla Walla, and another in the 00 Block of SE Tenth Street in College Place.

During the College Place raid, 49-year-old John A. Smith Sr. was arrested without incident, and in Walla Walla 32-year-old John A. Smith Jr. was also taken into custody.

WWCSO officials say the College Place location was considered the "clubhouse" for the area chapter of the Pagan Motorcycle Gang, who have been linked to what they said were "felonious" crimes here and in Georgia.

County officials say Pagan members have been arrested over the last few years for their participation in shootings, assaults, bombings, and homicides.

 TWO OTHER LOCATIONS IN SPOKANE SEARCHED 

At the same time, authorities raided two locations in the Spokane area, one of them said to be another Pagan clubhouse, no arrests resulted from those raids. The investigations continue.

You may recall last October, a Walla Walla Penitentiary guard was taken into custody for his alleged role in a brutal beating earlier in the year in Georgia.

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The Pagans are a motorcycle club founded in the late 1950's in Maryland.

A website called The Gangster Report (which tracks these kind of illegal mob or gang activities) says the Walla Walla chapter is reportedly part of a national "expansion" effort made by Pagan national leaders a couple of years ago.