Claims Hells Angel’s mates are standing over tow truck drivers

AAA Towing refused to speak to the Herald Sun about intimidation it has allegedly received. Another company ­allegedly being stood over, Modern Towing and Salvage, did not return phone calls.

Staff at towing companies fear reprisals if they speak out against the bikie, who is a senior member at the East County Hells Angels chapter in Campbellfield.

The figure aligned himself with Western Towing while he became a confronting figure in the industry. He also owns his own haulage business nearby to AAA Towing in Craigieburn, calling it 888 Towing.

Standover tactics against drivers have not been denied, but company directors have confirmed they will not ­report incidents to authorities VicRoads or Victoria Police because “it makes things worse’’. “He is a law unto himself,’’ one industry insider said.

It has been alleged:

DRIVERS have been assaulted at crash sites and stalked at their homes;

A DRIVER was run off the road in his tow truck;

STANDOVER men had warned a driver they knew where his daughter worked.

Western Towing, which allowed the Hells Angel to use one of its trucks, last week pleaded guilty to 71 charges over its rogue business practices dating back to May 2012.

The bulk of the charges related to employing unaccredited tow truck drivers, including the bikie, and operating tow trucks outside the company’s registered zones.

A Western Towing manager, Mike Armstrong, said the company no longer had any association with the Hells Angel but admitted there were problems in the industry, which had included drivers being “belted’’.

Last year police seized property, including a truck, from 888 Towing, during a mass raid.