- The gang leader and his second-in-command are also accused of extortion
- Other restaurant owners claim the gang members eat and leave without paying
- The victim of last week’s attack now has a restraining order against the leader
Tourists visiting British holiday hotspot Majorca have spoken out on the fears they face as the ‘dangerous Hells Angels biker gang roam freely’ in the streets just days after carrying out a brutal attack.
On March 19, officers from the National Police Robbery Department arrested the leader of the Hells Angels of the Balearic Islands and his second-in-command for beating a local restaurant owner.
The duo are also accused of extortion for demanding €10,000 from the restaurant owner.
But since the violent pair’s recent release, residents and tourists have raised concerns for their safety and have called the current climate on the island ‘unbearable’.
Members of the biker group have been spotted ‘roaming freely’ through the Playa de Palma streets following last week’s assault, leaving those who have made the island their main holiday destination ‘tired of living in fear’.
Klaus Joseph, a German tourist who has spent more than half his life taking holidays in Majorca, told Ultima Hora that it’s ‘unforgivable’ that they are forced to live alongside the biker gang.
‘It cannot be tolerated that an area like Playa de Palma and s’Arenal becomes a crime neighborhood and it looks like the Bronx,’ he said.
Although he explained he hadn’t had any altercations with any of the Hells Angels members, he said has witnessed first hand the consequences of messing with them ‘with some friends who have had a bad time with them.’
Another German tourist, Joseph, said he fears the Hells Angels ‘want to rule the entire area’ and is calling for a remedy from authorities as soon as possible before their stronghold over the holiday area becomes ‘worse’.
Following last week’s attack on a restauranteur, other staff members from eateries around the town have also voiced their fears on the the biker thugs.
One told the Spanish news outlet: ‘When they pass by we try to go unnoticed, but the climate of tension is palpable.
‘They come to a bar, consume and don’t pay. If you tell them something they threaten you, it is unbearable’.
Horror surveillance footage of the March 19 attack captured the moment a vehicle pulled up outside a restaurant before the president of the Balearic Islands’ Hells Angels chapter stepped out.
He and the restaurant owner were seen heading to the restaurant’s office when an altercation broke out.
The victim told Ultima Hora the gang leader said: ‘Either you pay me €10,000 or you will end up badly,’ before punching him in the face and forcing him to sit in a chair while he explained the conditions of payment of his alleged debt.
Once the biker had finished and turned away to leave the office, the restaurant owner can be seen standing up and swinging punches at his attacker, before the president of the gang flees the office.
Once on the terrace of the building, another member of the biker gang comes to his bosses aid.
The pair then brutally beat the restaurateur and left him with a broken jaw and in need of surgery, according to local reports.
During the attack, the bikers allegedly stole a solid gold chain from the victim’s neck – valued at €7,000.
Before leaving the restaurant, the Hells Angel leader can be seen pulling out a knife from his bag with which, according to the victim’s police statement and other witnesses, he threatened everyone present.
‘We are very afraid . We live in fear and my wife has already suggested selling the place and leaving here,’ he said.
‘The damage, apart from physical injuries, is very great’.
He also told Spanish press that although extortion is common in the area, individuals must have courage to report the gang members to the National Police, otherwise ‘we will live our entire lives kneeling before these gangs’.
Police are currently investigating the attack and analysing the security footage and are expected to visit other locations on the island that have reported incidents involving the Hells Angels.
The two gang members involved in the restaurant attack are not be able to approach the victim or the premises given that they are under a restraining order.
They will also not be able to contact the restaurant or any of their employees.
Emily Foster is a globe-trotting journalist based in the UK. Her articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.