Two members of the Hells Angels have been sentenced to prison for their roles in the criminal activities of the Sonoma County chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, federal prosecutors said.
Jeremy Greer, 43, was sentenced to seven years for multiple assaults, armed robbery, home robbery, and witness intimidation, the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California said Friday.
Merl Hefferman, 54, was sentenced to four years for arranging the illegal burning of a former Hells Angel member who was killed in the Fresno club’s clubhouse, prosecutors said.
“Hefferman used his connection to a funeral home to order the illegal cremation of a member of his own gang as part of the Hells Angels’ efforts to cover up a murder. For eight years, the “Greer committed serious violent crimes, including armed robbery, assault, and maiming,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Tripp.
The investigation began in 2014 with the disappearance of former member Joel Silva, who was killed by Fresno Hells Angels president Brian Wendt, Sonoma County Hells Angels president Jonathan Nelson, and former Sonoma County president Russell Ott, according to the US Attorney’s Office.
Wendt, Nelson, and Ott were convicted of the murder in 2022 and await sentencing.
In addition to Silva’s murder, 11 members and associates of the Sonoma County chapter were charged with narcotics distribution, assault, robbery, extortion, illegal firearms possession, obstruction of justice, and witness intimidation, said prosecutors.
The investigation involved the FBI, the Santa Rosa Police Department, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department, and the California Highway Patrol.
