German police raid Hells Angels in major crackdown

Police in Germany's most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia launched a large-scale crackdown on the Hells Angels motorcycle gang, deploying around 1,200 officers across 28 cities after authorities banned a local chapter.

The state's interior ministry said on Tuesday that more than 50 properties were searched from early morning, including homes and business premises of members and associates. Special police units were also involved.

The operation, which the ministry described as one of the largest ever against biker gang crime in the western state, followed a ban on the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club Leverkusen chapter.

Raids took place in cities including Leverkusen, Cologne, Dortmund and Duisburg, among others.

Several Hells Angels chapters had already been banned in the state in recent years. A previous ban on the Hells Angels MC Concrete City chapter, imposed in 2017, was upheld by a higher administrative court in 2021.

According to recent media reports citing the State Criminal Police Office (LKA), the Hells Angels had 29 chapters in North Rhine-Westphalia, with around 469 members, making it the largest biker group in the state, ahead of rivals such as the Freeway Riders.