OFF THE WIRE
The national president of the Pagans motorcycle gxxg was arraigned Thursday on drug charges and is being held on $750,000 bond in the Westmoreland County Prison.
Dennis "Rooster" Katona, 45, of 113 Ember Lane, Hempfield, was arraigned before District Judge Joseph Dalfonso following a raid by a state police SWAT team at his home Wednesday.
Katona was charged by the state police organized crime unit with possession and possession with intent to deliver cocaine and methamphetamines after troopers, backed by a helicopter and armored vehicle, stormed the house in the Evanstown section of the township.
Katona served 63 months in federal prison for his role in an attack in 2002 on the Hells Angels in the "Hellraiser Ball" on Long Island. He has worked his way up through the ranks, according to a 2002 indictment, from sergeant-at-arms, to treasurer, to president of the national chapter.
Neighbors said Katona had been living on the quiet, rural road for the past two years. Westmoreland County property records indicate Katona purchased the two-story home at a sheriff's sale for $8,000.
The Pagans have had a longstanding presence in Western Pennsylvania.
There are chapters in Greensburg in Westmoreland County and in Fayette City in Washington County. The national headquarters once was based in Herminie until federal authorities indicted a number of its officers and seized the property. Authorities say the gang now is headquartered in Fallowfield, Washington County.
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