Pagans bikers held for trial in Wawa shooting allegedly sparked by a rivalry between two outlaw clubs
Seven members of the Pagans will face a Montgomery County judge on charges including aggravated assault and reckless endangerment for an incident outside of a West Norriton Wawa last month.
Members of the Pagans outlaw motorcycle club targeted two members of a rival club at a Wawa store in West Norriton this fall, setting off a chain of events that left six people shot, including two bystanders, prosecutors in Montgomery County said Friday.
During a marathon preliminary hearing, held at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility due to security concerns, seven members of the Pagans were held over for trial by District Judge Marc Alfarano on charges including aggravated assault, conspiracy, riot, and reckless endangerment.
Those who appeared before Alfarano were: Joel Hernandez-Martinez, 36, George Hripto Jr., 50, and Jason Lawless, 45, all of Bridgeport; Manuel Baez-Santos, 34, of Norristown; Erik Dixon, 33, of King of Prussia; Luke Higgins, 29, of Dauberville; and Justin Noll, 34, of Reading.
Two other Pagans allegedly involved and facing similar charges in the incident, George Cwienk III, 51, of Bridgeport, and Erik Rosenberger, 46, of East Greenville, had their preliminary hearings continued due to a scheduling issue with their attorneys.
Assistant District Attorney Bradley Deckel said the group conspired to attack two members of the Unknown Bikers outlaw club after seeing them parked at the Wawa on Oct. 17.
Given the rules of their subculture, Deckel said, the Pagans felt they had no choice but to confront the rival club.
“They knew what they had to do the moment they saw a group invading their territory,” Deckel said. “And they had to teach them a lesson with violence.”
But defense attorneys for the Pagans took turns sharply rebutting Deckel’s theory during the seven-hour hearing, arguing that their clients were not the ones responsible for the shooting. They asserted that prosecutors had built their case entirely on speculation and innuendo, unfairly painting their clients as dangerous in news coverage.
Further, they said, investigators could not clearly identify what role each of the nine men played in the supposed conspiracy to attack the other bikers, nor prove whether any of the Pagans were armed at the time.
Noll’s attorney, Robert J. Kirwan II, argued that the alleged targets in the case — the Unknown Bikers — were the ones who should be held accountable. Ballistics evidence showed 13 of the 14 bullets fired during the chaotic melee came from their guns.
He said he was “disgusted” that the men were not called to testify during Friday’s hearing.
“It’s astounding that the Unknown Bikers are not charged,” Kirwan said. “What we do know is that they unloaded all of their ammunition at the people present, including bystanders, and yet they’re walking free.”
After pulling into the Wawa just after 9 p.m., the Pagans encircled the other two bikers and began assaulting them. In turn, the Unknown Bikers opened fire on the Pagans with two 9mm handguns in what prosecutors described as an act of self-defense.
Three of the Pagans — Cwienk, Hernandez-Martinez, and Noll — were injured in the gunfire. Nearby, a man filling his tires with air was shot in the face as he dived for cover, and a woman smoking a cigarette outside the store was shot in the right side.
Deckel, the prosecutor, said that during the attack some members of the group strategically positioned their bikes at the gas station’s entrance, in what he described as an attempt to prevent their targets from escaping.
The Pagans’ defense attorneys denied that entirely, saying their clients were the true victims in the attack. Paul Lang, representing Dixon, said his client abandoned his motorcycle and fled as soon as the first gunshots rang out, despite the supposedly coordinated assault.
Still, Deckel said, the motive for the attack was clear: The Pagans wanted the Unknown Bikers’ “cuts,” their denim vests bearing the club logo. In the world of outlaw clubs, a biker’s cut is sacred and, therefore, a trophy sought by his rivals, according to a gang expert who testified Friday.
After the shooting, five of the Pagans were arrested during a car stop in Bridgeport. One of the motorcycles they were riding bore a bullet hole in its gas tank.
The other four were taken into custody in the following days, prosecutors said, tracked down through automated license plate readers and cell phone records.