Missouri – A Tennessee man who is connected to an outlaw motorcycle support club has confessed to being involved in a violent incident on the side of the road that left a member of a rival club seriously injured in Missouri. U.S. District Judge Greg Kays heard the guilty plea in federal court. This was a big step in a long-running racketeering case involving motorcycle gang activity.
According to the Department of Justice, Graham S. Gattis, 41, from Tennessee, admitted to taking part in an armed attack that was done to help with racketeering. Court records suggest that Gattis is a member of Los Valerosos, a support group for the Pagan’s Motorcycle Gang. He pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and to possessing a firearm during a crime of violence.
The attack happened on September 17, 2022, in Blue Springs, Missouri. Prosecutors said that Gattis and other members of the Pagan’s and Los Valerosos chased down a single member of a rival motorcycle club.
The gang pushed the victim off the road and then surrounded him on the shoulder. Some of the attackers had weapons and at least one had an axe handle.
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The fight rapidly got violent. The victim was shot seven times during the encounter. He had cuts on his knee, thigh, forearm, biceps, buttocks, and the back of his leg. Despite the severity of the attack, the victim survived.
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Under federal law, Gattis must serve at least five years in prison, with the possibility of a life sentence. There is no parole under federal law. Congress sets the maximum penalty, but the court will decide the exact sentence after looking at advisory sentencing guidelines and other legal issues.
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There is no date set yet for the sentence. The United States Probation Office will first send the court a presentence investigation report that looks at Gattis’s past and the specifics of the crime.
