OFF THE WIRE
Arizona police nab 27 after biker gang shootout
Source: Xinhua August 23 2010]
Twenty-seven suspects were nabbed by police in Arizona after a shootout between rival biker gangs Saturday that injured five people, authorities said Sunday.
The suspects would be sent to northern Arizona's Camp Verde Detention Center on charges of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, endangerment, participation in a criminal street gang, and unlawful assembly, the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office in a press release.
The arrest was made after two rival biker gangs, the Hell's Angels and the Vagos gang waged a fierce gunbattle at a private residence. At least 50 rounds of gunshots have been fired and five people were inflicted with non-life-threatening wounds.
Police have locked down the Yavapai County neighborhood where the fight took place after receiving reports that more than 100 bikers may have been on their way to help their fellow members. A bar manager in the area told a local ABC News affiliate the gunbattle could not have been avoided given mounting tensions between the gangs.
Law enforcement officers say they will stay in the are
