Riding with Angels

Mounties and Gypsy Wheelers in White Rock

Abstract

Policing in the scenic oceanside city of White Rock near the US border in the Lower Mainland proved challenging due to influxes of visitors in the busy summer months attracted by beaches and waterfront strip known for partying and alcohol-induced fun. The small Royal Canadian Mounted Police-Gendarmerie royale du Canada (RCMP-GRC) provided under contract policing arrangements was limited by numbers of personnel and escalating costs to police effectively. The Gypsy Wheelers, a local outlaw motorcycle club reflecting a certain style of west coast biker culture, represented another public nuisance that aggravated policing difficulties, involved in a variety of misconduct and criminal activities including assaults, drug-dealing, and rape. Frustrated with lack of RCMP-GRC action, local White Rock residents forced the Gypsy Wheelers to leave city limits for Langley, where a clubhouse was established. Retaining the White Rock name, the Gypsy Wheelers patched over to the Satan’s Angels and eventually became a founding BC charter in the Hells Angels when that motorcycle gang moved into the province. Drawing upon police surveillance and criminal intelligence files released through access to information, local archival records, and newspapers, this article argues that structural weaknesses in RCMP-GRC contract policing at the municipal and provincial levels hardly prevented the Gypsy Wheelers from evolving into a full-fledged outlaw motorcycle gang resulting in a lasting problem for law enforcement’s fight against organized crime in British Columbia.