Denver’s coroner on Monday identified the 46-year-old man slain in a
shooting during a motorcycle club melee on Saturday that also left seven others
Denver's coroner on Monday identified the 46-year-old man slain in a shooting
during a motorcycle club melee on Saturday that also left seven others injured.
(Andy Cross, The Denver Post)
Feb 1:
Denver motorcycle expo canceled amid claim of escalating biker tension
Biker clubs exchange dueling versions of fatal shooting at Denver expo
Jan 31:
Mongols: "Cop club" started fatal brawl at Denver motorcycle expo
Biker brawl at National Western Complex: 1 killed, 7 others hospitalized
Jan 30:
Denver cancels second day of motorcycle expo after shooting kills one
A motorcycle club known for its inclusion of law enforcement officers had been
involved in several high-profile fights with rivals across the country before
Saturday's deadly brawl in Denver.
Experts and a lawyer for the Iron Order Motorcycle Club say culture clashes with
"outlaw" groups — also known as 1 percenters — led to violence in recent years.
The confrontations even rose to the attention of federal agents, who in a 2014
report noted the club's rapid expansion despite bloodshed.
"Probably the best way to put it in a nutshell is to say the Iron Order has been
having problems with everybody," said Steve Cook, executive director of the
Midwest Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Investigators Association.
Authorities on Monday identified the 46-year-old man killed in the Colorado
Motorcycle Expo fight.
Several guns have been recovered, but no arrests have been made. Seven men were
injured in the fight; three remain in critical condition.
Representatives from the Iron Order and Mongols Motorcycle Club blame each other
for the clash.
Denver police Cmdr. Ron Saunier said the battle started as an argument at the
bottom of a stairwell and quickly escalated. Investigators are still unsure what
the fight was about.
During the expo, various motorcycle clubs had established territory within the
National Western Complex, Saunier said. He didn't know if the territories were
sanctioned or had been claimed once members showed up.
Four people were shot, including Victor Mendoza, who died of a single gunshot
wound. An attorney for the Mongols said he was a member of the club.
The Mongols released a photograph they say was taken moments before the fatal
shooting and showing an Iron Order member holding a handgun at the top of a
stairwell. Mongols members, including Mendoza, are looking on as the armed man
is led away.
Later, he was taken off in handcuffs by police but not arrested.
The Iron Order calls itself a law-abiding club, setting itself apart from others
linked to criminal activity. That proclamation has been questioned.
Arthur Musselman, a teacher at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center who
specializes in motorcycle gangs, said some Iron Order members have been
implicated in crime. Still, they are not considered on the same playing field as
outlaws.
A member of the Iron Order Motorcycle Club, is shown holding what appears to be
a handgun in this photo from inside the bike show moments before members of
A member of the Iron Order Motorcycle Club, is shown holding what appears to be
a handgun in this photo from inside the bike show moments before members of the
Mongols Motorcycle Club say the shooting began Saturday. (Photo provided by
Stephen Stubbs, attorney for the Mongols)
"They have not been classified in the same ranks as your traditional 1 percent
motorcycle gangs," Musselman said.
John C. Whitfield, a lawyer for Iron Order, said the group is despised by
counterparts. Their three-piece patch, their law enforcement membership and
their club colors are points of contention.
"When you start wearing patches like the three-piece patch, even if you wear a
certain color, it can make some of these 1 percent clubs unhappy," Whitfield
said. "Because of that we are always getting poked and tweaked. It has led to
some altercations."
Typically, new groups are expected to ask permission from outlaws before using
certain insignias. Whitfield says the Iron Order has not followed that unwritten
rule.
DOC ID photo of employee Derrick Duran.
DOC ID photo of employee Derrick Duran. (HANDOUT | )
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said in a 2014 report
that the Iron Order's patch "has infuriated" members of several outlaw groups,
including the Hells Angels, Iron Horsemen, Pagans and Bandidos. Back-and-forth
beatings ensued.
In 2014, an Iron Order recruit shot and killed a member of the Black Piston
Motorcycle Club in an altercation outside a Jacksonville Beach, Fla.,
restaurant.
Last year, the Iron Order was linked to a Mississippi shooting with bikers tied
to the Bandidos Motorcycle Club.
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The Iron Order's lawyer said those shootings were in self-defense and the Denver
brawl was no different. Outlaw groups see it differently.
Donald Charles Davis, known as "The Aging Rebel" for his motorcycle club musings
on his namesake blog, said the Iron Order "very much are troublemakers."
Davis, who has been a member of several clubs, said the Iron Order has picked
fights throughout the country. In a posting after the Denver shooting, he said
the group is widely despised "not only for its members' aggressive rudeness ...
but because it is widely considered to be a 'cop club.' "
"Just about any 1 percenter club you can name has had violent confrontations
with the Iron Order Motorcycle Club," Davis said. "They just don't play by the
rules."
Stephen Stubbs, an attorney for the Mongols Motorcycle Club, on Monday
reiterated claims the Iron Order was responsible.
"It was a fair fight until the Iron Order member pulled out a gun, Stubbs said.
"For them to come out and play the victim when they picked the fight is
outrageous. They are a bunch of cops who say the rules of society don't apply to
them."
The Iron Order says a Colorado Department of Corrections officer fired a shot
during the expo brawl, and the DOC confirmed Monday evening that employee
Derrick Duran was involved.
Authorities have not said whether the officer's shot hit anyone.
Duran is on administrative leave with pay while the case is under investigation,
according to the DOC statement. He has been with the department since May 2012.
Attempts to reach Duran were unsuccessful.
Police say they don't know of other law enforcement officers who were involved.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or @JesseAPaul
Iron order
Founded in 2004 by a former federal agent, the Iron Order has been rapidly
spreading across the nation. It's known for having a base of police and
corrections officers as well as active-duty military and government contractors,
but also claims members from all walks of life.
Mongols
The Mongols Motorcycle Club is an international group classified by the U.S.
Department of Justice as a highly organized criminal enterprise.
1/5
Motorcyclists leave the National Western Stock Show complex January 30, 2016
after Denver Police reported a shooting and stabbing at during the Colorado
Motorcycle Expo leaving one dead and several wounded. (Photo by Andy Cross/The
Denver Post)
Motorcyclists leave the National Western Stock Show complex January 30, 2016
after Denver Police reported a shooting and stabbing at during the Colorado
Motorcycle Expo leaving one dead and several wounded. (Photo by Andy Cross/The
Denver Post)
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