Arizona GIITEM task force, Next hearing date for men affiliated with Vagos has been set

OFF THE WIRE
Yavapai County Superior Court Judge Cele Hancock on Monday set a pre-trial conference for Brian Apfel and Jess Flores for Jan. 10 at 9 a.m. in connection with the Hells Angels and Vagos motorcycle gxxx shooting in an unincorporated area northwest of Chino Valley.

Flores, 61, of Glendale, faces charges of discharging a firearm, possession of narcotic drugs and possession of dangerous drugs. Apfel, 38, of Las Vegas, faces charges of discharging a firearm at a residential structure.

Both Apfel and Flores, who are affiliated with the Vagos motorcycle gxxx according to Yavapai County Sheriff's Office records released in September, participated in Monday's hearing by telephone after Hancock granted motions by their lawyers on Oct. 28.

In motions requesting the telephonic conference, Apfel's attorney Craig Williams wrote, "Discovery is ongoing and a continuance will be required." Flores' attorney David Shapiro wrote, "It is a health and financial hardship for Mr. Flores to travel from his home in Glendale to Prescott. It would be an unnecessary hardship to make the trip when no substantive issue will be addressed at this pretrial conference."

Last week, Hancock granted attorneys for both Apfel and Flores a 60-day extension to file a motion to remand their cases to the grand jury, according to documents filed with the court.

The attorneys are filing motions challenging the grand jury proceeding by saying the defendants were denied a substantial procedural right.

In his reply Oct. 19 to the state's response on the motion to remand, Williams wrote, "The state presented this case to the grand jury with cherry-picked and misleading testimony - while omitting clearly exculpatory evidence - that did not allow the grand jury to be unbiased and independent. Thus, the defendant was denied a substantial procedural right, and the case should be remanded."

In an Oct. 11 response and objection to the Apfel motion to remand, Steve Young, Yavapai County deputy county attorney, wrote, "Any claim defendant has that the state withheld clearly exculpatory evidence from the grand jury is egregious."

Young asked the court to deny the Apfel's motion to remand and instead allow the matter to proceed to trial.

Williams specifically mentioned in his response that the grand jury was not told that several Hells Angels members were indicted for the same incident, that guns and spent shells were found at the Hells Angels house, that Theodore Toth, 58, who was president of the Skull Valley chapter of the Hells Angels was portrayed by the state as a helpless victim, and "independent evidence that was developed that there was a shooting at the Vagos from the Hells Angels house."

Williams also wrote in his reply that Apfel and Flores told police they were being shot at.

In a Chino Valley police report released in September, Apfel told police he fired his gun that day "in safety of my life." An officer found several fired shell casings and one live round in his left front pocket, according to the police report.

Williams also wrote that Apfel is not a one-percenter, a person that considers themselves an outlaw and does not acknowledge law enforcement, saying that testimony on that was materially misleading.

Young wrote in response that "nothing contained in the record reflects that (the detective) made a deliberate or malicious misstatement of any facts or that his testimony is biased."

Williams also wrote that pictures of Apfel's tattoos were not presented to the grand jury, but "the pictures were included only to taint the court against the defendant."

Young wrote, "Detectives with Arizona GIITEM task force have identified defendant as a member of the Vagos. When arrested defendant was wearing a black leather jacket with Vagos patches. Defendant exhibits permanent body tattoos supporting the Vagos."

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