Zurich Hells Angels are “not a crime syndicate”
A six-year probe into the activities of the Zurich Hells Angels Motorcycle Club has cleared it of being a criminal organisation.
However, five members of the group will be accused of drug dealing, racketeering and attempted kidnapping as a result of the Federal Prosecutors Office investigation.
The defendants reject the allegations.
“Suspicions that the Hells Angels, or at least a core group of the club, act as a crime syndicate could not be corroborated,” the Federal Prosecutors Office said on Thursday.
In a highly-publicised nationwide crackdown in 2004 the Federal Police temporarily arrested nearly 20 people, searched homes and impounded motorcycles, computers and jewelry.
The Federal Criminal Court is still to announce a date for the trial.
Founded in 1970 the Zurich Hells Angels club was one of the first European chapters of the United States organisation. There are currently seven such local clubs in Switzerland.
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