Loners Motorcycle Club

The Loners Motorcycle Club was founded in 1979 by Gennaro "Jimmy" Raso and Frank Lenti.[5] Since the club's initial establishment in Ontario, the Loners president Jimmy Raso would eventually expand overseas, establishing chapters in the United States as well as parts of Europe. The first European chapter was opened on 24 December 1995.[6] The Loners had chapters in Toronto, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Windsor, and London.[7] Unusually for a Canadian outlaw biker club by the late 1990's, the Loners had chapters abroad with one in Portugal and seven in Italy, having chapters in Naples, Messina, Salerno, Reggio Calabria, Brolo, Avellino and Isernia.[7]

During the 1990s, Hells Angels from Quebec would frequently visit the Loners.[8] In June 1993, the Hells Angels led by their national president Walter Stadnick hosted a party in Wasaga Beach that was attended by all of the Ontario biker gangs except the Outlaws and Satan's Choice.[9] Lenti and the Loners were guests of honor at the party.[10] Stadnick tried to persuade Lenti to have the Loners "patch over" to the Hells Angels, an offer Lenti refused.[10] However, a working relationship was established under the Loners agreed to buy their drugs from the Angels.[10]

Frank Lenti would later be expelled from the Loners in 1994, which is said to either be due to allegations of him stealing from the club[1] or the fact that his temper was apparently getting out of control.[11] Upon being kicked out of the Loners, Lenti would go on to found a new outlaw motorcycle club with permission from the Loners, the Diablos, which would later go to war with the Loners in the summer, supported by the Satan's Choice.[1] Satan's Choice agreed to sell drugs to the Diablos and offered the possibility of joining Satan's Choice, which angered the Loners, who were buying their drugs from the Hells Angels.[1] Under pressure from the Hells Angels, the Loners came into conflict with the Diablos in the summer of 1995, who called upon Satan's Choice for help.[1] On 18 July 1995, a Diablo threw a homemade bomb at a tow truck owned by a Loner severely injuring him.[1] A Loner shot two Diablos, through the injuries to both men were non fatal.[1] In June a brawl ensues between the Loners and Satan's choice, multiple people are injured. On 1 August 1995, the Toronto clubhouse of Satan's Choice – which was backing the Diablos – was hit by a rocket fired from a military rocket launcher injuring several members and killing one.[1] On 16 August 1995, Satan's Choice struck back by firing a rocket – again from a military rocket launcher – at the Loners' Woodbridge clubhouse injuring several members.[12] A Loner told the media it was not Satan's Choice that fired the rocket as he clamied: "Looks like the cops have stolen our rocket launcher".[13] Despite the lucid headlines in the newspapers, Satan's Choice and Loners were not committed to an all-out struggle against the other, and Lorne Campbell made an agreement with the Loners and Satan's Choice that all of York Region north of Highway 7 was a "no war zone".[14] On 25 August 1995, Lenti the leader of the Diablos was nearly killed by a bomb planted in his car, which left him in a hospital for months.[13] The Diablos collapsed without Lenti, after the deaths of two members they were absorbed by the Loners.[13] The York Regional Police (YRP) and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) raided the Loners' Woodbridge clubhouse where they found a few weapons, but were unable to make any arrests. With the Diablos Motorcycle club gone, by the end of 1995 the Loners and Satan's Choice had agreed to peaceful terms[13]

In early 1997, the Loners split into two factions, one led by Frank Grano and another by Jimmy Raso.[15] The pro-Angel faction led by Grano joined the pro-Angel Para-Dice Riders while the anti-Angel faction led by Raso retained the Loner name.[16] Stadnick cut off the supply of drugs to the remaining Loners, causing the gang to decline.[17]

In June 1999, the Annihilators Motorcycle Club was absorbed by the Loners.[18] One of the members of the Chatham chapter of the Loners, Jimmy Coates, had a brother, John Coates, who was a member of the Hells Angels' Sherbrooke chapter.[19] John Coates was a 6'7 man who weighted 300 pounds while younger brother Jimmy was not as large, but still intimidating.[20] Through his brother, Jimmy Coates opened a secret pipeline for buying drugs from Sherbrooke.[1] The president of the Chatham chapter, Wayne Kellestine, was adamantly against having the Loners join the Hells Angels and once pistol-whipped one Loner who expressed a desire to join the Angels.[20] Together, the Coates brothers worked to encourage a mutiny against Kellestine with the promise of joining the Angels as the reward. On 22 October 1999, an assassination attempt was made against Kellestine as he stopped in his truck for a red light in his hometown of Iona Station.[21] A car driven by Philippe "Philbilly" Gastonguay of the Angels' Sherbrooke chapter together with a pro-Angel Loner David "Dirty" McLeish drove up and one of the two men in the car opened fire, spraying Kellestine's truck with bullets.[22]

In December 2000, the Hells Angels entered Ontario by "patching over" a number of Ontario biker gangs.[23] A number of Loners chose to join the Angels. Jimmy Coates became the first president of the Angels' London chapter in December 2000.[24] Most of the others in the London chapter were like Coates former Loners. The Woodbridge chapter of the Loners continued to exist, albeit only as an ally of the Angels.[23] In February 2001, Edward Winterhalder of the Bandidos visited Woodbridge to discuss having the Loners join the Bandidos, an offer that was declined by the chapter president Pietro Barilla.[25] By contrast, the Chatham chapter of the Loners joined the Bandidos in May 2001.

Over the past decade at the club has made significant increases in growth and membership, it's current influence is the strongest it's ever been with the club possessing chapters in several countries around the world, the 2010's the club formed an alliance with fellow International Canadian Motorcycle Club the Rock Machine. The Loners Motorcycle Club is a group of motorcycle enthusiasts that are not involved in organized crime, any members that choose to commit these acts do so without the permission of the club.[26]

• Langton, Jerry (2010). Showdown: How the Outlaws, Hells Angels and Cops Fought for Control of the Streets. Toronto: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0470678787.