Great Nordic Biker War
Encyclopedia
The Great Nordic Biker War, sometimes called the Great Northern Biker War or Great Scandinavian Biker War, refers to the violent gang war that began in 1994 and continued until 1997 in many parts of Scandinavia and Finland, mainly involving Hells Angels MC
and Bandidos MC
but also involving many prospect and support clubs including Outlaws MC
. The cities mainly affected by the war were Copenhagen
in Denmark, Helsinki
in Finland, Oslo
in Norway, and Helsingborg
and Malmö
in Sweden.
1980, a motorcycle club was formed by Jørn "Jønke" Nielsen, a Hells Angels
chapter in Copenhagen
, Denmark. They fought and defeated rival MC gang Bullshit from 1980-87. In 1984 Morticians MC was formed and by the early 1990s, there were many motorcycle clubs across Scandinavia. In 1992, the Morticians and Hells Angels, who had been on good terms until then, became rivals as both clubs transformed from bike enthusiasts into criminal organizations. The Morticians then changed their name to Undertakers MC and became allies of the Bandidos
, whose only European chapter was based in Marseille
, France at that point. In 1993, the Undertakers merged with the Bandidos to become Bandidos MC Denmark. In 1994, the Hells Angels tried to prevent Morbids MC from growing into an established biker gang and potential rival, in Sweden. The Morbids then joined an alliance with the Bandidos, who backed-up their prospect club. Outlaws MC
also joined with the Bandidos in Norway. This eventually led to a drug-trade war between the two most powerful outlaw biker gangs in Scandinavia, the Hells Angels and the Bandidos, which the police described as a "deadly game" to prove 'who's the toughest'. Many of the port cities in Scandinavia, particularly Copenhagen, were used to smuggle drugs in from Spain and the Netherlands.
, Sweden, but no one was injured or killed. In February 1994, there was a shoot-out between Hells Angels and Bandidos members in the same city, resulting in the death of Joakim Boman, a Hells Angels member. Just days later, an anti-tank rocket was fired at the Hells Angels clubhouse. On 22 June 1994, the president of Klan MC, an ally of the Bandidos in Finland, was shot dead by the Hells Angels and on 19 February 1995, the war reached Norway as a shoot-out in Oslo
between the Hells Angels and Bandidos ended in one biker being wounded.
Michael "Joe" Ljunggren, the president of Bandidos MC Sweden, was assassinated on 17 July 1995 and the Bandidos retaliated by firing anti-tank rockets at the clubhouses of Hells Angels prospect clubs in Helsinki
, Finland and Helsingborg, Sweden nine days later. Two Bandidos members were later sentenced, Kai Tapio Blom was given six years imprisonment and Antti Tauno Tapani was given four years. When Bandidos MC Finland's president arrived at a Helsinki court house for the trial of Blom and Tapani, he was attacked and beaten by Hells Angels members. A Hells Angels-owned tattoo parlour in Helsinki was later destroyed in retaliation.
On Christmas Day 1995, two Hells Angels members were beaten up by Bandidos at a nightclub in Copenhagen, signalling the beginning of the war in Denmark. In January 1996, there were a series of bombings in Norway, Hells Angels prospect club, Screwdrivers MC's clubhouse in Hamar
and the Hells Angels' clubhouse in Oslo were the targets. A Hells Angels-owned bar in Helsinki, Finland was also bombed a month later. On 1 March 1996, the Hells Angels attacked the Bandidos' Helsinki clubhouse where two Bandidos members suffered gunshot wounds. Jarkko Kokko, the vice-president of Bandidos MC Finland and one of the men shot, died sixteen days later in hospital from his wounds. Two Hells Angels prospects were later arrested for the murder, Ilkka Ukkonen was sentenced to twelve and a half years in prison and Jussi Penttinen was given six years.
On 10 March 1996, there were twin attacks on Bandidos members at airports in Denmark and Norway; at Fornebu airport in Oslo, several Bandidos were wounded and at Kastrup Airport in Copenhagen, Bandidos who were returning from a weekend in Helsinki were shot, three wounded and one, Uffe Larsen, was killed. Six Hells Angels members and associates were arrested and sentenced to a total of 53 years in prison, and one was given a life sentence. In April and May 1996, there was another series of bombings as the Hells Angels clubhouses in Helsingborg, Sweden and southern Denmark were attacked and the clubhouse of a Hells Angels prospect club, Avengers MC, was also attacked in Aalborg
, Denmark.
Jan "Face" Krogh Jensen, a Bandidos member, was shot and killed in Drammen
, Norway on 15 July 1996 and Hells Angels supporter was shot six days later in Oslo. Two Hells Angels were also shot and wounded that month in Malmö
, Sweden and at Jyderup prison in Denmark. On 28 August, the vice-president of Hells Angels MC Sweden was shot and wounded in Helsingborg.
In October 1996, there were three attacks on Hells Angels clubhouses; on the 3rd, an explosion in Malmö wounded twelve innocent bystanders and three days later, an anti-tank rocket was fired at a clubhouse in Copenhagen during a party. Hells Angel member Louis Linde Nielsen and guest Janne Krohn were both killed. Bandidos prospect Niels Poulsen was convicted of carrying out the attacks and sentenced to life in prison. On the 30th, a car bomb exploded outside the Hells Angels clubhouse in Oslo. Toward the end of 1996, there were shootings of Bandidos members in Horsens
and Aalborg in Denmark.
At the beginning of 1997, Hells Angel Kim Thrysöe Svendsen was murdered in Aalborg and the president of the Outlaws, Thore "Henki" Holm, and a French member were shot and wounded by a member of Untouchables MC, a Hells Angels ally. Bandido footsoldiers were also shot in Amager
and Køge
in Denmark. The Bandidos responded by ordering shootings on Hells Angels members and allies in Frederiksberg
.
On 4 June 1997, a car bomb exploded outside a Bandidos clubhouse in Drammen, Norway, killing Irene Astrid Bækkevold, a civilian passing by in her car. A Hells Angels member was finally convicted of the bombing in 2002. Three days later, Björn Gudmandsen was killed and three other Bandidos were wounded after a shooting in Liseleje, Denmark. Hells Angel member Vagn Smith was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. The last incident happened on 11 April when the Bandidos clubhouse in Dalby
, Denmark was bombed.
The war ended on 25 September 1997 as "Big" Jim Tinndahn, the president of all of the Bandidos' European chapters, shook hands with Hells Angels Europe president Bent "Blondie" Nielsen in front of Danish TV news cameras.
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a worldwide one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their primary motto...
and Bandidos MC
Bandidos
The Bandidos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Bandido Nation, is a "one-percenter" motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate with a worldwide membership. The club was formed in 1966 by Don Chambers in Texas. Its slogan is We are the people our parents warned us about. It is estimated to have...
but also involving many prospect and support clubs including Outlaws MC
Outlaws Motorcycle Club
The Outlaws Motorcycle Club, incorporated as the American Outlaws Association or its acronym, A.O.A., is a one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate that was formed in McCook, Illinois in 1935....
. The cities mainly affected by the war were Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
in Denmark, Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
in Finland, Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
in Norway, and Helsingborg
Helsingborg
Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...
and Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
in Sweden.
Overview
On New Year's EveNew Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
1980, a motorcycle club was formed by Jørn "Jønke" Nielsen, a Hells Angels
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a worldwide one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their primary motto...
chapter in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Denmark. They fought and defeated rival MC gang Bullshit from 1980-87. In 1984 Morticians MC was formed and by the early 1990s, there were many motorcycle clubs across Scandinavia. In 1992, the Morticians and Hells Angels, who had been on good terms until then, became rivals as both clubs transformed from bike enthusiasts into criminal organizations. The Morticians then changed their name to Undertakers MC and became allies of the Bandidos
Bandidos
The Bandidos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Bandido Nation, is a "one-percenter" motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate with a worldwide membership. The club was formed in 1966 by Don Chambers in Texas. Its slogan is We are the people our parents warned us about. It is estimated to have...
, whose only European chapter was based in Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, France at that point. In 1993, the Undertakers merged with the Bandidos to become Bandidos MC Denmark. In 1994, the Hells Angels tried to prevent Morbids MC from growing into an established biker gang and potential rival, in Sweden. The Morbids then joined an alliance with the Bandidos, who backed-up their prospect club. Outlaws MC
Outlaws Motorcycle Club
The Outlaws Motorcycle Club, incorporated as the American Outlaws Association or its acronym, A.O.A., is a one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate that was formed in McCook, Illinois in 1935....
also joined with the Bandidos in Norway. This eventually led to a drug-trade war between the two most powerful outlaw biker gangs in Scandinavia, the Hells Angels and the Bandidos, which the police described as a "deadly game" to prove 'who's the toughest'. Many of the port cities in Scandinavia, particularly Copenhagen, were used to smuggle drugs in from Spain and the Netherlands.
The war
The first incident was a shooting at the clubhouse of Morbids MC, on 26 January 1994 in HelsingborgHelsingborg
Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...
, Sweden, but no one was injured or killed. In February 1994, there was a shoot-out between Hells Angels and Bandidos members in the same city, resulting in the death of Joakim Boman, a Hells Angels member. Just days later, an anti-tank rocket was fired at the Hells Angels clubhouse. On 22 June 1994, the president of Klan MC, an ally of the Bandidos in Finland, was shot dead by the Hells Angels and on 19 February 1995, the war reached Norway as a shoot-out in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
between the Hells Angels and Bandidos ended in one biker being wounded.
Michael "Joe" Ljunggren, the president of Bandidos MC Sweden, was assassinated on 17 July 1995 and the Bandidos retaliated by firing anti-tank rockets at the clubhouses of Hells Angels prospect clubs in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland and Helsingborg, Sweden nine days later. Two Bandidos members were later sentenced, Kai Tapio Blom was given six years imprisonment and Antti Tauno Tapani was given four years. When Bandidos MC Finland's president arrived at a Helsinki court house for the trial of Blom and Tapani, he was attacked and beaten by Hells Angels members. A Hells Angels-owned tattoo parlour in Helsinki was later destroyed in retaliation.
Hamar
is a town and municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hamar. The municipality of Hamar was separated from Vang as a town and municipality of its own in 1849...
and the Hells Angels' clubhouse in Oslo were the targets. A Hells Angels-owned bar in Helsinki, Finland was also bombed a month later. On 1 March 1996, the Hells Angels attacked the Bandidos' Helsinki clubhouse where two Bandidos members suffered gunshot wounds. Jarkko Kokko, the vice-president of Bandidos MC Finland and one of the men shot, died sixteen days later in hospital from his wounds. Two Hells Angels prospects were later arrested for the murder, Ilkka Ukkonen was sentenced to twelve and a half years in prison and Jussi Penttinen was given six years.
On 10 March 1996, there were twin attacks on Bandidos members at airports in Denmark and Norway; at Fornebu airport in Oslo, several Bandidos were wounded and at Kastrup Airport in Copenhagen, Bandidos who were returning from a weekend in Helsinki were shot, three wounded and one, Uffe Larsen, was killed. Six Hells Angels members and associates were arrested and sentenced to a total of 53 years in prison, and one was given a life sentence. In April and May 1996, there was another series of bombings as the Hells Angels clubhouses in Helsingborg, Sweden and southern Denmark were attacked and the clubhouse of a Hells Angels prospect club, Avengers MC, was also attacked in Aalborg
Aalborg
-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
, Denmark.
Jan "Face" Krogh Jensen, a Bandidos member, was shot and killed in Drammen
Drammen
Drammen is a city in Buskerud County, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the eastern and most populated part of Norway.-Location:...
, Norway on 15 July 1996 and Hells Angels supporter was shot six days later in Oslo. Two Hells Angels were also shot and wounded that month in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
, Sweden and at Jyderup prison in Denmark. On 28 August, the vice-president of Hells Angels MC Sweden was shot and wounded in Helsingborg.
Horsens
Horsens is a Danish city in east Jutland. It is the site of the council of Horsens municipality. The city's population is 53,807 and the Horsens municipality's population is 82,835 ....
and Aalborg in Denmark.
At the beginning of 1997, Hells Angel Kim Thrysöe Svendsen was murdered in Aalborg and the president of the Outlaws, Thore "Henki" Holm, and a French member were shot and wounded by a member of Untouchables MC, a Hells Angels ally. Bandido footsoldiers were also shot in Amager
Amager
Amager is a Danish island in the Øresund. The Danish capital, Copenhagen, is partly situated on Amager, which is connected to the much larger island of Zealand by five bridges.-History:...
and Køge
Køge
Køge Municipality is a municipality in Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand approx. 40 km. southwest of Copenhagen. The municipality covers an area of 255 km² , and has a total population of 56,637...
in Denmark. The Bandidos responded by ordering shootings on Hells Angels members and allies in Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg Kommune is a municipality on the island of Zealand in Denmark. It surrounded by the city of Copenhagen. The municipality, co-extensive with its seat, covers an area of and has a total population of 98,782 making it the smallest municipality in Denmark area-wise, the fifth most...
.
On 4 June 1997, a car bomb exploded outside a Bandidos clubhouse in Drammen, Norway, killing Irene Astrid Bækkevold, a civilian passing by in her car. A Hells Angels member was finally convicted of the bombing in 2002. Three days later, Björn Gudmandsen was killed and three other Bandidos were wounded after a shooting in Liseleje, Denmark. Hells Angel member Vagn Smith was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. The last incident happened on 11 April when the Bandidos clubhouse in Dalby
Dalby
Dalby is a Scandinavian place name meaning "valley settlement", during the Viking Age, the name was brought to England and it later also became an English surname...
, Denmark was bombed.
The war ended on 25 September 1997 as "Big" Jim Tinndahn, the president of all of the Bandidos' European chapters, shook hands with Hells Angels Europe president Bent "Blondie" Nielsen in front of Danish TV news cameras.