Rock Machine Motorcycle Club
The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club (RMMC) or Rock Machine is an international outlaw motorcycle club founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1986. It has eighteen Canadian chapters spread across seven provinces. It also has nine chapters in the United States and eleven chapters in Australia, with chapters also located in 24 other countries worldwide. It was formed in 1986, by Salvatore Cazzetta and his brother Giovanni Cazzetta. The Rock Machine competed with the Hells Angels for control of the street-level narcotics trade in Quebec. The Quebec Biker War saw the Rock Machine form an alliance  with a number of other organizations to face the Hells Angels. The conflict occurred between 1994 and 2002 and resulted in over 160 deaths and over 300 injured. An additional 100+ have been imprisoned. Common nicknames for the organization include "R.M.", "Black & Platinum", "RMMC", and "1813". The official Rock Machine club motto is ""A La Vie A La Mort"", or "To the Life Until Death". The club also possesses a patch that reads "RMFFRM" which stands for "Rock Machine Forever, Forever Rock Machine", an extremely common tradition among outlaw motorcycle clubs. The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club gained the status  of a "Hang-around" club in May 1999 and after eighteen months, became a probationary chapter of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club on December 1, 2000. Bandidos National Officer Edward Winterhalder was put in charge of overseeing the transition by Bandidos International President, George Wegers. The original version of the Rock Machine (1986-1999) in Canada changed their colors from black and platinum to red and gold in May 1999; their colors remained red and gold until they became "Full-Patch" Bandidos on December 1, 2001. In a "patch-over" ceremony at the Rock Machine's Kingston chapter clubhouse. After the  few remaining Bandidos members in Canada quit the organization and Bandidos Canada was dissolved, ex-members of the Mongols and the Bandidos (most former Rock Machine) reformed the Rock Machine under the guidance of Sean Brown in 2007, adopting the original black and platinum colors as their patch. As of 2007, the current incarnation of Rock Machine is a club of motorcycle enthusiasts that dismisses claims of involvement in criminal activity. Any members of the club that do so, act of their own accord and without the consent of the club. The club's racial policy is all-inclusive and  possesses members from several different ethnicities around the world including African Canadian/Americans. Despite the group's use of the Waffen SS's double lighting bolt on one of their patches, it is mainly to show respect to the club's historical roots as opposed to the racial meaning of the symbol, due to large numbers of their founding members being a part of the SS Motorcycle Club. It is also worn due to its status in the motorcycle community. It is seen as an outlaw symbol, as society dictates people should not wear it, thus outlaws usually wear it  as a sign of rebellion against societal standards as opposed to racial ideology. Since 2007. The club has spread across Canada and throughout several other countries worldwide, including the United States, Australia, Germany, Russia, Switzerland, Hungary, Belgium, New Zealand, Sweden, Serbia, Norway, France, South Africa, England, Spain, Georgia, Hong Kong, Kosovo, Kuwait, Armenia, Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Turkey. As of 2022, the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club has established over 120 chapters on 5 continents since its inception. In the 2000s, the Rock Machine allied themselves with fellow international Canadian motorcycle club the Loners Motorcycle Club. Early history. In  approximately 1982, Salvatore Cazzetta was a member of the SS, a white supremacist motorcycle gang based in Pointe-aux-Trembles, on the eastern tip of the Island of Montreal the club was also known as the SS Merciless Riders. Fellow SS member Maurice Boucher became friends with Cazzetta and as leaders of the club, the pair became candidates to join the Hells Angels when that club expanded into Canada. Giovanni Cazzetta had joined the Outlaws Motorcycle Club at a young age and had been involved in the First Biker War, he had remained a member of the organization in Quebec  until 1984, when he left to join his brother in the SS Motorcycle Club. A Lennoxville, Quebec, chapter of the Hells Angels suspected in March 1985 that the Laval chapter was interfering with drug profits through personal use of products intended for sale. It is believed that the Laval chapter's invitation to a Lennoxville chapter party led to the ambush and death of five Laval members. Divers located the decomposing bodies of the victims at the bottom of the St. Lawrence River, wrapped in sleeping bags and tied to weightlifting plates, two months after the party. The event became  known as the "Lennoxville massacre," and its extreme nature earned the Quebec chapter of the Hells Angels a notorious reputation. Cazzetta considered the event an unforgivable breach of the outlaw code and, rather than joining the Hells Angels, in 1986 formed his own club, the Rock Machine, with his brother Giovanni. They recruited some of the best talent around and formed alliances with the Rizzuto crime family, the West End Gang, and the Dubois Gang. Giovanni Cazzetta would hold the position of second-in-command. Only Salvatore would hold more influence. Future Rock Machine National President, Fred Faucher later said , "Sal once told me, 'Those guys (Hells Angels), they operate their club in such a way that I didn't want to join them'". The founding members of the Rock Machine were Salvatore Cazzettta, his younger brother Giovanni and a few close friends of theirs, many of whom were members of the SS Motorcycle Club. Other founding members included Paul "Sasquatch" Porter, Johnny Plescio, Andrew "Curly" Sauvageau, Renaud Jomphe, Gilles Lambert, Martin Bourget, Richard "Bam Bam" Lagacé, Serge Pinel and several others.On the surface, the Rock Machine ran operations like tattoo parlors and bars, as well as motorcycle repair  shops, what the group truly profited off was the sale of narcotics and other prohibited goods. As the Rock Machine charged much less for their cocaine than did the Hells Angels, the gang quickly won much market share in the Montreal area. The Hells Angels had been badly weakened by the Lennoxville massacre on 24 March 1985, when five members of the Angels' chapter in Laval were shot by their colleagues, afterward the vacuum was filled by a number of Montreal-based organized crime groups most prominent being the Rock Machine, and it was not until the early 1990s that  the Angels became a major force in Montreal organized crime again. Initially Rock Machine members chose not to wear Hells Angels-style leather vests that could easily identify members, and instead wore rings displaying an eagle insignia (this would last until the 1995, with the adoption of three-piece vests). The official Rock Machine club motto is ""A La Vie A La Mort"", or "To the Life Until Death". The club the possesses a patch that reads "RMFFRM" which stands for "Rock Machine Forever, Forever Rock Machine", an extremely common thing among outlaw motorcycle clubs. In April 1992, Giovanni Cazzetta  was arrested by police and charged with trafficking narcotics, police found him to be in position of three kilograms of cocaine worth around $120,000(modern equivalent when adjusting for inflation of $246,000 US). He was forced to plead guilty to four charges the following spring and would be sentenced to four years in prison, Giovanni was be released in 1997 and briefly participated in the conflict that was to come. Marice Boucher, was released after finishing a forty-month sentence for armed sexual assault, joined the Hells Angels and was subsequently promoted within the club's ranks. The Hells  Angels and Rock Machine co-existed peacefully for many years, a situation that, according to police officials, was due to Boucher's respect for his friend, Cazzetta and the latter's connections with the Quebec Mafia, the only organized crime group that the motorcycle gangs were unwilling to attack. Quebec Biker war. Founder of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club, Salvatore Cazzetta was arrested at a pitbull farm located in Fort Erie, Ontario during 1994. He was charged with attempting to import more than eleven tons (22,000lbs) of cocaine valued at an estimated 275 million dollars US (adjusting for inflation the  2021 value is $513,238,697). Claude Vézina, who was President of the Quebec City chapter at the time, became the new National President of the Rock Machine. Renaud Jomphe was made President of the Montreal chapter, while Marcel Demers became the President of the Quebec City chapter until eventually opening the Beauport chapter in late 1996. Recently promoted Hells Angels Montreal President Boucher began to increase pressure on the Rock Machine shortly after the arrest, which initiated the Quebec Biker war. The local Rock Machine Motorcycle Club formed an affiliation, the Alliance, with Montreal crime families such as the Pelletier  Clan, Dark Circle and other independent dealers who wished to resist the Hells Angels' attempts to establish a monopoly on street-level drug trade in the city. A violent turf war ensued with the Hells Angels. The Rock Machine MC, its support clubs and the Pelletier Clan would provide manpower while the Dark Circle would provide the funding. The Dark Circle's leadership was ruled by a committee of five. The chairman was Michel Duclos Boucher organized "puppet clubs" to persuade Rock Machine-controlled bars and their resident drug dealers to surrender their illegal drug business. This led to the  creation of The Palmers MC, a Rock Machine MC support club with chapters in Montreal and Quebec City, it was created to counter Hell's Angels allies, the Rockers MC, Evil ones and Death Riders MC support clubs. It was led and organized by Rock Machine members Jean "Le Francais" Duquaire and André “Dédé” Désormeaux, who was initially a member of the Dark Circle but joined the Rock Machine, these two were described as the grandfathers of the Palmers MC, all of its members would be patched into the Rock Machine in 2000. The starting point of the conflict is  disputed; however on July 13, 1994, three members of the Rock Machine entered a business in downtown Montreal. They assassinated Pierre Daoust, a member of a Hells Angel support club, the Death Riders Motorcycle Club. Once it was confirmed they had the right target he was shot 16 times in the head and torso. There was very little coverage over this incident however many in Montreal's underground knew that the Rock Machine was defending its territory, months before the death of Daoust. The members of the Alliance (Rock Machine MC, Pelletier Clan, The Dark Circle) as well as other  individual narcotics dealers and street gangs all met to discuss a united front against the Hells Angels after they gave the narcotics community of Quebec an ultimatum to have them as their mandatory supplier of all contraband goods and narcotics. This offer was refused and the Alliance was formed; due to the Hells Angels' "monopolistic attitude" they had decided to take the initiative and strike first. A day after on July 14, 1994, The Rock Machine attempted to assassinate Normand Robitaille, a member of Hells Angels support club the Rockers MC and a future and prominent member of the Hells  Angels. The attempt failed and Quebec police announced that they had arrested five members of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club for planning to bomb the Evil Ones MC clubhouse which was also aligned with the Hells Angels. With current knowledge of events due to information from Sylvain Boulanger, it is known that on July 15, 1994, the hierarchy of the Hells Angels in Quebec held emergency meetings in the city of Longueuil, Quebec. All four chapters in Quebec at the time were present (Montreal, Quebec City, Trois-Rivières and Sherbrooke). There was also a meeting at Hells Angels bunker during  this period of time. All chapters had to cast a vote on whether or not they would participate in the conflict against the Rock Machine and their alliance. All four chapters agreed and the club began to prepare for the long conflict ahead. The Hells Angels was an international organization and received aid from all over the country and internationally, giving them more support then the Rock Machine. On 19 October 1994, a local drug dealer Maurice Lavoie was gunned down in his car and his girlfriend was wounded. Lavoie had previously been buying his wares from the Pelletier Clan  associated with the Rock Machine, but had recently switched to the Hells Angels, and as a result the Pelletier Clan hired a hitman named Patrick Call to kill Lavoie. On 28 October 1994, Sylvain Pelletier, the leader of the Pelletier Clan, was killed by the Hells Angels, who threatened to murder any drug dealer who did not buy their supplies from them. After these killings, an increasingly murderous struggle for the control of the drug trade in Montreal began between the Hells Angels and the Rock Machine that would see 20 dead before the end of 1994. After Pelletier was  killed, the independent drug dealers of Montreal formed the "Alliance to fight the Angels" headed by his younger brother, Harold Pelletier, whose first act was an attempt to assassinate Boucher in November 1994. Another member of the Pelletier Clan, Martin Simard, purchased enough stolen dynamite to fill a truck, which was left near Boucher's favorite restaurant by Alliance member Martin Pellerin. The plan was to set off the explosives by remote control when Boucher arrived, killing him and everybody else in the restaurant, but a Montreal parking officer noticed the truck was parked illegally and had it towed, thus  unknowingly foiling the plot. On 24 June 1995, Boucher founded the Nomads, an elite chapter of the Angels, that unlike the other chapters, had no geographical limit and were to operate all over Canada. To join the Nomads, applicants were required to commit murders, which ensured that no undercover police agents could enter the Nomads chapter. Additionally, only the highest-quality Angels who had proven themselves could join the Nomads. On August 13, 1995, a Jeep wired with a remote-controlled bomb exploded, killing Hells Angels associate Marc Dube and an 11-year-old boy, Daniel Desrochers, who was playing  in a nearby schoolyard, An Interpol informant claimed that the plan was created and facilitated by Boucher to earn back public credit. The first Full-Patch Hells Angels member was shot to death entering his car at a shopping mall a month later. Nine bombs went off around the province during his funeral targeting several Hells Angels businesses and properties. This series of violence related to Operation Wolverine, a police crackdown on both groups in which 130 were arrested. in October 1995, Harold Pelletier, one of the heads of the Pelletier Clan(Member of the Alliance), turned himself in to the  Sûreté du Québec, confessing that on the night of 7 August 1983, he murdered a drug dealer named Michel Beaulieu who was behind in his payments to the Pelletier Clan, and asked that the police provide him with protection from the Angels in exchange for more information about his crimes. Ultimately, Pelletier confessed to committing 17 murders between 1983 and 1995, yet he was convicted only of the murder of Beaulieu. Pelletier's murder of Beaulieu was classified as second degree murder, despite the fact Beaulieu had fallen asleep after Pelletier got him drunk before he was shot. Since the  murder was premeditated, it should have been classified as a first degree murder. In his plea bargain struck in June 1996, Pelletier was sentenced to life imprisonment with a promise that he receive full parole after 10 years served, in exchange for which he shared all he knew about the Montreal underworld. The Crown justified the plea bargain with Pelletier, given that he was guilty of 17 murders, on the grounds he was a "mine of information" about the underworld of Montreal. Pelletier's motives for striking a plea bargain was that the "Alliance against the Angels" was collapsing with  Alliance members defecting over to the Angels, and he wanted Crown protection from the Angels. However, Pelletier violated the terms of his plea bargain, under which he promised not to commit any more crimes, when he was caught in 2002 attempting to bribe another prison inmate to kill a prisoner whom he disliked, allowing the Crown to revoke its agreement and Pelletier was not released in June 2006 as was promised 10 years earlier. Pelletier finally received full parole in December 2013 after he completed his high school equivalency degree, started attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, and demonstrated an ability to  get along with penitentiary staff. On 18 October 1996. President of the Rock Machine Montreal chapter, Renaud Jomphe was shot and killed. The Rock Machine leader was seated with fellow club members Christian Deschenes and Raymond Laureau in a booth at the rear of a Chinese restaurant known as Restaurant Kim Hoa, located on Wellington Street. A man entered the establishment and approached the table, fired several shots, and fled out the rear of the building. Jomphe and Deschenes were killed, while Laureau was wounded in the shoulder. One of the Paradis Brothers, Peter Paradis, would succeed Jomphe as president  of the Montreal chapter, taking over much of his business in the suburb of Verdun. In November 1996, the Rock Machine planted a bomb in the old Hells Angels bunker in St. Nicholas and the residential neighborhood where it was located was shaken by the immense force of the blast. The bunker received significant damage. On 28 March 1997, Rocker member Aimé Simard, stating he was acting under the orders of the Rocker president, a man known as Gregory "Pissaro" Wooley, murdered Rock Machine member Jean-Marc Caissy as he entered a Montreal arena to play hockey with his friends . In early 1997, Giovanni Cazzetta was released from prison, he would return to the Rock Machine, Claude Vézina willing stepped down and Giovanni was given the position of National President in his brother's absence. He would lead the club through the conflict until May 1997. In May Giovanni was subject to a police sting in which a man from Alberta attempted to purchase 15 kilos of cocaine(valued at $600,000, adjusting for inflation the modern equivalent of $1,132,000). This individual turned out to be an informant for the crown. The mules Frank Bonneville and Donald Waite, that delivered  the cocaine to the informant were arrested and the narcotics seized by police, Matticks, Bonneville and Waite pled guilty on June 17, 1997, and were sentenced to three, four, and two years respectively. Claude Vézina would be momentarily reinstated as National president of the Rock Machine. Giovanni attempted to fight the charges brought against him, however he would lose these appeals, he was sentenced to 5 years prison time in April 1998. While Maria Cazzetta, Giovanni's sister and Suzanne Poudrier received one year conditional sentences On May 19, 1997. Prominent Rock Machine member Serge Cyr was placed under arrest  and charged with conspiracy along with 13 others including members of the Rock Machine, Pelletier Clan and Palmers MC for planning the murder of Hells Angels president Maurice "Mom" Boucher. In 1994, a stolen van loaded with explosives was discovered outside the Cri-Cri restaurant on St. Catherine street, the restaurant was an establishment that Boucher often ate at. Cyr was released soon after, with the condition that he would report to police once a week, which he never did Cyr gained reputation from this and after the December 2000 arrests, he was promoted to President of the Montreal chapter . On 21 May 1997, Claude Vézina and his sergeant-at-arms Dany "Le Gros" Légaré were both charged with the trafficking of narcotics. In order to conduct his arrest, police had to sneak by guard dogs that he had located on his property; they entered his home and arrested him in his bedroom. This was all the result of a sting operation set up by the Quebec police. In mid 1997, an imprisoned Hells Angel, Denis Houle, was the victim of an unsuccessful assassination attempt when a Rock Machine member opened fire on him from beyond the prison fence. The  resulting investigation first alerted the public to the existence of the Dark Circle, and it was reported the Hells Angels would pay well for information identifying the members of the Dark Circle. Over the next two years, two members of the Dark Circle were murdered by the Hells Angels while a third escaped when the Hells Angels shot and killed the wrong Serge. As the war turned into a battle of attrition the Hells Angels began to gain the upper hand as ever-increasing levels of support poured in from around Canada and internationally, but at the same time, the  Great Nordic Biker War was taking place, and the Rock Machine was impressed with the way that the Scandinavian branches of the Bandidos held their own against the Scandinavian branches of the Hells Angels. In June 1997, the three leaders of the Rock Machine, Fred Faucher, Johnny Plescio, and Robert "Tout Tout" Léger, went to Stockholm to seek support from the Swedish branch of the Bandidos, but were expelled by the Swedish police, who declared that they did not want Canadian bikers in their country. Faucher, had been the President of the Rock Machine Quebec City chapter prior to his  promotion to National President, he had gained wide attention in underworld circles by blowing up the Hells Angels clubhouse in Quebec City in February 1997 and after the Rock Machine's leader Claude "Ti-Loup" Vézina was arrested for drug smuggling, he became the Rock Machine's new leader on 11 September 1997. On 8 September 1998, Johnny Plescio, a founding member of the Rock Machine, was at his Laval home watching television when his cable was severed. As he rose to see what was wrong with his television, 27 bullets went through Plescios's living room window, 16 of  which struck him. At Plescio's funeral, a flower arrangement appeared bearing the word Bandidos, which was the first sign that the Bandidos Motorcycle Club of Texas was taking an interest in the Rock Machine. On October 28, 1998. Police arrested 25 Rock Machine members and associates as they we're eating dinner in the restaurant of a downtown hotel. The men were forced to lie facedown on the ground, they were searched, and then placed under arrest. Richard Lagacé and Denis Belleau were among those arrested, many were freed the next day, after swearing to stay away from the  others that were picked up by police. Disaster struck the Dark Circle, when one of their number, Salvatore Brunnettii, a restaurateur, bar owner and drug dealer, defected to the Hells Angels and gave them a list of the remaining members of the Dark Circle which basically led to their collapse, leaving the Rock Machine and fragmented members of the "Alliance" to face the Hells Angels and their support clubs. By 1999 the Rock Machine MC were seriously looking to align itself with longtime Hells Angels rivals the Bandidos Motorcycle Club as the other factions in the Alliance had been devastated , with the Rock Machine itself receiving substantial losses. During May 1999 the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club became a 'Hang-around" club for the Bandidos. On 17 April 2000, Normand Hamel, one of the Nomads, was killed when attempting to flee from Rock Machine assassins in a Laval parking lot while he and his wife were taking his son to the doctor. He was the most senior member of the Hells Angels killed during the conflict. On 12 May 2000, the Angels tried to kill the two Rock Machine members, Tony Duguay and Denis Boucher, suspected of killing Hamel, leading to  a wild car crash, during which Duguay took bullet wounds to his arms, right hand, and thigh. About forty police officers from the Carcajou squad raided the Rock Machine chapter in Beauport but found nothing worthwhile, and in June 2000, the Rock Machine set-up in Ontario began recruiting former members of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. In July 2000, Boucher's plans to set up an internet company were derailed when Robert "Bob" Savard, the loan shark who charged 52% interest on the loans he made to the desperate and needy, was gunned down at the Déjeuners Eggstra! restaurant in  the north end of Montreal, Savard had been a Hells Angels associate for several years and was considered a right-hand man for Boucher. Savard's dinner companion, Normand Descoteaux, a hockey player turned loan shark, was also a target, but he survived by grabbing a waitress, Hélène Brunet, and using her as an involuntary human shield, ensuring that she took four bullets meant for him. Despite the way Brunet took bullets in her arms, legs and shin, Descoteaux was not charged. The shooter's were infamous Canadian hitman, Gerald Gallant and an unidentified associate of his. Gallant was employed  by Michel Duclos, the leader of the Dark Circle and also frequently carried out contracts for the Rock Machine during the conflict with the Hells Angels, from 1980 to 2003, he was responsible for 28 murders and 13 attempted murders. His most active years were during the Quebec Biker War, were he killed two members of Hells Angels support clubs in 1997 and a third survived an assassination attempt. In 1998 when he eliminated five men, including Paul Cotroni Jr., son of deposed mob boss Frank Cotroni, making 1998 his most prominent year as a hitman, he also at periods  worked for the Irish-Canadian West End Gang. On December 6, 2000, 255 police officers tracked and arrested 16 Rock Machine members and associates on narcotics trafficking charges. The "ring", operated by Marcel Demers Leader of the Beauport chapter and National president Fred Faucher of the Quebec City chapter, were accused of distributed more than two kilograms of cocaine a month and generated almost $5 million in profits annually(modern equivalent of $8,347,967). Alain Brunette would he promoted to the position of national president, until he became the first president of Bandidos Canada on December 1, 2001, Jean-Claude  Belanger would replace Brunette as president of the Quebec City chapter. Robert Léger would head the Beauport chapter until his death. Also In December 2000, the Rock Machine officially became a probationary club of the Bandidos, seeing the division this caused the Hells Angels would approach the Alliance with the offer of a ceasefire brokered by the Rizzuto crime family, which was accepted. The truce had an ulterior motive for the Hells Angels as they hoped to halt the expansion of the Bandidos in Canada, especially Ontario. The Hells Angels would also convince members of the Rock Machine who did  not agree with the "patch-over" to join them. The truce would last for only a brief period before hostilities continued. This plan was mostly successful and from late December 2000 until early 2001, ten of the Rock Machine's Ontario members joined the Hells Angels. The Hells Angels national president, Walter Stadnick, offered the Hells Angels membership to the Rock Machine's Kingston, Niagara Falls and Toronto chapters while excluding the London chapter, saying that the members of the London chapter were unqualified to be Hells Angels. Some members of the Kingston chapter and a few of the Toronto  chapter took up Stadnick's offer, as it was felt by some that the Bandidos patch with its cartoonish drawing of a Mexican bandit was "silly". Furthermore, Stadnick offered Hells Angels membership on a "patch-for-patch" basis, allowing members to trade their current patches for equivalent Hells Angels while the Bandidos required new members take a reduction in rank. Paul "Sasquatch" Porter, a founding member of the Rock Machine and the President of their Kingston chapter, he was extremely influential in the club and was responsible for initiating the creation of the Rock Machine's three chapters in Ontario . Porter wrote on the wall of the clubhouse: "Hello to all the RMMC, I wish you the best with your new colors! Bye my brothers!" Porter became the president of the Hells Angels new Ottawa chapter. The fact that the Hells Angels had conspired to kill Porter several times when he was a member of the Rock Machine did not stop him from defecting. A similar situation would occur with the Toronto chapter of the Rock Machine, an Outlaws Toronto chapter "Patched-Over" to the Rock Machine in June 2000, the to Bandidos by January 2001, but due to dissatisfaction  among altleast half of the chapters membership, with abandoning the Rock Machine resulted in a vote to join the Hells Angels in February 2001, the remaining members would form a second weaker Toronto chapter. The Niagara Falls chapter chose to remain with the Bandidos. Regardless of the prior issues, on December 1, 2001. The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club became official members of the Bandidos Canada in a "Patch-Over" ceremony at the Rock Machine's Kingston chapter club house. The Bandidos Canada inherited seven new chapters(Montreal, Quebec City, Point-Aux-Trembles, Beauport, Toronto, Kingston and Niagara Falls). On March 28  of the same year, a massive investigation by Canadian authorities dubbed Operation Springtime was launched against the Hells Angels. The raids resulted in the arrests of 138 members of the Hells Angels including Maurice Boucher himself and associates connected with the motorcycle club. This brought about a power vacuum in the country's narcotics market. The Bandidos Canada were looking to take advantage of this opportunity to regain territory lost and take new territory from the Hells Angels. However a concurrent investigation, Operation Amigo, was underway targeting the Bandidos Canada operations. This operation had initially gone under a different title  and was created to target the Rock Machine as a result of the conflict in Quebec. When The Rock Machine patched over to the Bandidos they became the main focus. On June 5, 2002, raids led to the arrests of 62 members of the Bandidos Canada (Rock Machine) including all of its Quebec manpower and many other associates. This put an end to the conflict as it was the first time since the start of the war that both sides had large numbers of men and their respective leaders in custody and facing charges. All in all it is the  deadliest recorded biker conflict in history with over 162 dead, over 300 wounded, 100 plus arrested and 20 people missing. It also cost the government of Canada and Quebec millions of dollars in damages with 84 bombings, and 130 cases of arson. Break from Bandidos and revival. In 2006, an event known as the Shedden massacre occurred; the incident saw the murders of eight prominent Bandidos at a farm house in Iona Station, Ontario(it is referred to as the Shedden massacre due to the fact that the bodies were dumped near the Hamlet of Shedden). The Bandidos Canada closed its  doors officially in October 2007. A failed attempt to get the club back on its feet by the then released Frank Lenti, lack of support from US and European Bandidos, and the Canadian members' (Rock Machine) suspicions about their US counterparts' involvement in the Shedden murders led to the closure. During this period it was confirmed by the President of the newly formed Rock Machine, that there were still 27 other members of the Bandidos that we're still active in Canada at the time, none of which were involved in the massacre. The Rock Machine was officially reopened in  Ontario around late 2007, by several disgruntled members of the now-defunct Bandidos Canada(former members of the Rock Machine), former members of the "No Surrender Crew" based in Ontario, former members of Bandidos and Mongols MC in Western Canada(which accounted for the groups initial membership there in late 2008), the Rock Machine would reopen it's Toronto chapter in April 2008 and had recruited around 24 members. Operation Amigo in 2002 had led to the arrest of many Ontario and Quebec Bandidos. In 2003, they were forced to make a deal due to pressure from the Hells Angels, that they  would retire from crime and discontinue any association with the Bandidos MC. Private investigator Alex Caine, stated that it was these individuals that initially brought about the rebirth of the club. "Eventually, these bikers came up with the idea of rebranding themselves as Rock Machine members, a move that they felt they would not negate the deal that they had made, but which left the Hells Angels feeling hoodwinked." He also estimated that at the time during mid 2008. The Rock Machine probably had somewhere around 100 Full-Patch members across Canada and more than half were members of the  original Rock Machine Motorcycle Club. The new Rock Machine was initially led by Sean Brown, who reorganized it as the Rock Machine Canada Nomads. The move was also intended as an insult toward the Bandidos US national chapter and Bandidos National President Jeffrey Pike in particular, but gained unexpected momentum. In August 2008, President of the newly founded RMMC Sean "Crazy Dog" Brown, gave an interview with the Ottawa Citizen, he stated the reformed club contains former members of the Bandidos(who were not associated with the RMMC beforehand) and original Rock Machine members. Members who were being released from prison  or joined in prison were instrumental in the revival of the club, despite the clubs new rule set revolving around the inclusion of criminals in the organization. The Rock Machine were not willing to exclude former Bandidos or original RMMC members of the club that had been imprisoned. Even though they possessed criminal records, they claimed those joining would no longer be involved in crime(essentially claiming second chance clause). He went on to state that the group "maintains a brotherhood and close association with the Western based Red Power" and the Rock Machine had different mentality and it was not  the criminal organization it had been before. The Rock Machine's expansion west occurred in late 2008, since the clubs reformation in Ontario under Sean Brown, he had given permission for chapters to be formed internationally in Australia and the United States sometime in early 2008. Two members of the Rock Machine Nomads chapter out of Australia, were arrested at the Winnipeg Airport in September 2008, they were in Manitoba on on request of the International Nomads chapter to help set up a chapter in Winnipeg, they were held and extradited back to Australia. The Rock Machine would be established  in the province later that year regardless of the setbacks, with the chapter being established by former members of the Winnipeg Bandidos chapter, which would be joined by former members of the Mongols. The entire club would be reinforced by patching over a small Canadian motorcycle club known as "The Crew" MC, which had chapters in Huron County, Ontario and Western Canada. The vast majority of the new Rock Machine were former members of the Bandidos and the journalist Jerry Langton noted that the connection with the first Rock Machine did not exist. Langton noted that the website for the  Rock Machine had a section set aside for dead members, which did not list a single member of the Rock Machine killed in the Quebec biker war, but instead listed the "Shedden 8" victims of the Shedden massacre. Langton wrote "these guys aren't the Rock Machine. In they have little to do with them". The Manitoba Rock Machine would become much more aligned with national leadership during the presidency of Jay "Critical J" Strachan who would become President of the Winnipeg chapter after Ron Burling, he was eventually elected International President of the Rock Machine after Sean Brown was  voted out, this was due to his lack of wanting to expanding back into Quebec after their initial setup in Montreal, also the club did not like the soft approach that he was taking towards the Hells Angels, a policy of appeasement. Strachan had a deep respect for both the sacrifice made by the original members of the Rock Machine and the members of the slain No Surrender Crew(Rock Machine dubbed their remembrance patch "No Mercy Crew"). He instituted commemorative patches for both events, which members of the Nomads chapter wore on their jackets. These patches, especially the patch commemorating  the Quebec Biker War are still worn by members worldwide in the current day. The Rock Machine are estimated by authorities to have 300–400 members in the country as of 2022. The club spread across Canada and throughout several other countries worldwide including the United States, Australia, Germany, Russia, Switzerland, Hungary, Belgium, New Zealand, Sweden, Norway, France, South Africa, England, Spain, Georgia, Hong Kong, Kosovo, Kuwait, Armenia, Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Turkey. As of 2022, the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club has established over 120 chapters, in 26 countries, on 5 continents since its inception. The Rock Machine Motorcycle  Club has also been responsible for the creation of several support clubs, such as The Palmers MC (1994–2002/now defunct). Founded in Montreal, it was a participant in the Quebec Biker War, the SS Elite Motorcycle Club(2009–Present) a RM created support Club with rules and mentality modelled on the Waffen SS. It has had chapters in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba and the United States, the Hell Hounds MC(2010–2013), New Bloods MC(2014–Present), Fearless Bandits MC (2015–Present) and Vendettas Motorcycle Club(2009–Present) founded in Manitoba by the RMMC. Over the years it has become an international support club of the  Rock Machine with chapters in Canada, Australia and Russia. As support clubs they are tasked with providing security and manpower, support, enforcement and logistics to any Rock Machine MC chapter. The support club reports to the mother chapter in Quebec but is also required to support local chapters across the country/world. For those that complete this task for the duration of the probationary period, they will receive request to become members of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club. Most of these clubs shared the same colors, due to this the community is called the "Black and Platinum Family" The current  iteration of the Rock Machine MC maintains an enmity towards the Texas-based Bandidos, despite claims in Alex Caine's book "The Fat Mexican" that Rock Machine members in 2008 made a secret deal with high-ranking members of the Bandidos national chapter to re-open in Canada, as of 2022 the Bandidos have still not returned to Canadian soil. The Rock Machine is a group of motorcycle enthusiasts and claim that it now dismisses members who are involved in any known crimes or criminal activity. Any members that do commit crimes, do so without the club's permission. Langton  dismissed these claims, arguing that the Rock Machine had recruited Ron Burling to head their chapter in Winnipeg, when he was already in prison serving a 17-year sentence for assault and kidnapping as he maintained that only a criminal organization would recruit a violent criminal such as Burling serving his sentence as a member. Typical of the members of the Rock Machine was the President of its Winnipeg chapter, Ron Burling, described by the journalist Jerry Langton as a man with a shaven head, bushy goatee beard, his entire body covered in tattoos except for his face and described  him as a "physically huge man". Burling's Facebook profile described him as "a member of the Rock Machine Nomads" and his occupation as "Edmonton Maximum Security Penitentiary General Population". Burling had been convicted of a brazen kidnapping and assault. On 8 February 2005 as a member of the Bandidos Winnipeg chapter, Burling had smashed through the window of a car to remove a drug dealer named Adam Amundsen from his vehicle. Burling then beat Amundsen for several hours with a baseball bat and his fists to encourage him to pay back a $6,000 dollar drug debt owned to  the Bandidos. In addition, Burling used a knife to slice off a tattoo off Amundsen's body and then finally used a sledgehammer to smash every bone in Amundsen's index finger and then cut off the tip of his finger. Burling was convicted of assault and kidnapping, and threatened both the judge and the crown attorneys with violence when his appeal was quashed. Burling tried to lift the bench to throw at somebody, but was tasered by the court marshals. "We believe everybody deserves a second chance," a representative for the Rock Machine stated. "We won't throw our  members out who are in jail. We don't abandon our brothers that are in jail." Meeting with the Pagans. For decades the Pagans Motorcycle Club had looked north to Canada for possibility of expansion. It also found the idea of supporting Hells Angels rivals beneficial. The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club, a Canadian-based international motorcycle club with chapters all over the world, has fought several conflicts with the Hells Angels including the Quebec Biker War, the deadliest motorcycle conflict in history. The Pagans deeply respected these feats and sought to establish a relationship with the Rock Machine. In 2011 , dozens of the Pagans traveled to the Canadian province of New Brunswick to meet with the several chapters of the Rock Machine and other locals. At the time New Brunswick was a Canadian province that had little outlaw motorcycle influence. The meeting was to consolidate a friendship and probe the province for expansion. However, in 2018, Pagans member, Andrew "Chef" Glick revealed that the group had abandoned its plans at expansion North, they cited Canada's anti-biker laws but also a large part of the reason was that Canadian Hells Angels are considered particularly violent members of the outlaw  biker – or “one percenter” – community, Glick said in an interview. “In Canada and Australia, that’s where the heaviest (toughest) one per centers are,” Glick said. “Being a one per center in Canada, I would say is a little more dangerous than being a one per center in the U.S." New Jersey bikers are tough, but “not near as violent as what I’ve seen and read (about) in Montreal and Toronto.” Membership. Today the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club's Mother chapter resides in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. All official chapters follow the rules and regulations set out by the mother  chapter. With recent updates and reformats to the club's official Constitution in 2020, the rules are much more stringent, more relatable to other high-profile biker groups such as the Hells Angels. Earning membership and rules. Like most other Outlaw motorcycle clubs members must own and operate a North American or British-made motorcycle with an engine of at least 1000cc, have valid insurance and “sufficient riding skills not to be a danger to themselves or others”. Members must also travel a minimum of 5,000 kilometers per year. All Chapters must follow and support Canada as the Motherland and  fulfill all requests sent from Canada. “To earn their full patch membership, (a potential member) must also travel to the Mother Chapter of Quebec.” In order to become a Rock Machine prospect in Canada rules are particularly strict, candidates must have a valid license, a motorcycle and have the right set of personal qualities. They are not allowed to use social media to post any pictures or make any comments relating to the club, they cannot contact members of any other clubs this must be left to a Full-patch member. Prospects must also leave their "old lady" at  home. After a period of trial a prospective member is first deemed to be a "hang-around", indicating that the individual is invited to some club events or to meet club members at known gathering places. If the hang-around is interested, he may be asked to become an "associate", a status that usually lasts a year. At the end of that stage, he is reclassified as "prospect", participating in some club activities, but not having voting privileges while he is evaluated for suitability as a full member. Ending in highest membership status, is "Full Membership" or "Full-Patch". Fees  are typically around $100 a month, except for prisoners, whose fees are not charged. Past members. Well-known former members of the Rock Machine included Salvatore Cazzetta, Giovanni Cazzetta, Claude Vézina, Paul Porter, Andrew Sauvageau, Marcel Demers, Richard "Bam-Bam" Lagacé (deceased), Johnny Plescio (deceased), Tony Plescio (deceased), Renaud Jomphe former president of the Montreal chapter (deceased), Martin Bourget, Serge Pinel, Frédéric Faucher, Alain Brunette, who would become the first National President of the Canadian Bandidos in 2001 and Peter Paradis, who later testified for the Crown at the trials of other members, in the clubs 15 years of  existence he would be its first member to turn crowns evidence. The Rock Machine was merged with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club on January 6, 2001, in a patch-over ceremony located at the Rock Machine's Kingston chapter clubhouse. It was overseen by high-ranking Bandidos member Edward Winterhalder. They remained Bandidos for seven years. Around ten Rock Machine members at the time joined their former arch-enemy, the Hells Angels, due to the Bandidos refusal to grant full members status to "Full-Patch" members of the Rock Machine forcing them to become probationary members of the Bandidos and take  a reduction in ranking, this angered some members along with abandoning the Rock machine namesake for a Texas-based entity, it was felt by some that the Bandidos patch with its cartoonish drawing of a Mexican bandit was "silly". Furthermore, Stadnick offered Hells Angels membership on a "patch-for-patch" basis, allowing members to trade their current patches for equivalent Hells Angels. Many Rock Machine had gained respect from the Hells Angels that they had faced during the conflict and saw them as a better alternative. Notable members who defected to the Angels included original members Paul Porter and Andrew  Sauvageau. "Full-Patch" members Gilles Lambert, Nelson Fernandes, Bruce Doran(who founded the Kingston chapter) and Fred Faucher's brother Jean Judes Faucher. Fernandes would die of cancer within months of becoming a Hells Angel. Upon his release, club founder Salvatore Cazzetta joined Hells Angels in 2005, as the Rock Machine had merged with the Bandidos and was no longer active at the time. Jean Paul Beaumont, a Sargent at Arms for the Rock Machine Winnipeg chapter was tragically killed in 2012. Issues. Some of the current issues that the club faces, is an inconsistency in official International and National leadership , an individual out of Germany by the name of Suat Erköse, a former police officer and former member of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club(who had attempted to assassinate him in 2011), claimed to be the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club World President without any permission or vote from the Mother chapter. He was apparently given permission by Jean F. Emard, a man who claimed that he left the motorcycle club in 2015, and never received a status beyond Prospect officially. Emard has been mentioned several times by news agencies to be the leader of the Rock Machine, but he is not recognized  by its official leadership as a legitimate member(in recent years Canadian authorities have admitted they believe that he isn't even a legitimate leader of the group, "regardless of what the press might use for the headlines", and possibly "could have even been a distraction"). Suat, the self-proclaimed World president, has also been accused by the Rock Machine World community of selling club merchandise online and profiting from it. Michael Green a spokesperson for TBM Nation said "Rock Machine MC will ALWAYS and FOREVER be on Canadian soil and Mother Country and Mother Chapter will always and forever be  in CANADA. Rock Machine MC was built by Canadians and the real and true World President today is Cory ‘Tewltime’ Coates. Suat Erköse is NOT the World President for the Rock Machine MC – he got his "leadership" through Jean Emard, who also is one big fake RMMC, that's the true facts. I have made this post in respect of all our real and true Canadian Rock Machine MC Brothers to show them the RESPECT they all deserve, and to all the fallen Canadian Rock Machine MC Brother's who gave their lives to keep the eagle flying. NO ONE  outside Canada can and will not ever be World President of the Rock Machine MC – Only a Canadian can and will be the TRUE and, REAL World President of the Rock Machine MC." in 2020 the Mother Chapter released an official statement denouncing the fraudulent world president and any chapters that follow his lead, but also said that they would be more than willing to unify and consolidate with all chapters of the Rock Machine MC as long as they are willing to follow the Mother chapters rules and regulations. Just recently having had an election, a representative stated "We  are now under one governing body, with an elected National President. We will not fail." Rock Machine Motorcycle Club Mother chapter statement: "Although we do not follow, or recognize, Suat as our world leader, we will be open to communication with all Rock Machine Chapters around the world. Public bashing, via social media or any other form of public communication, of any Rock Machine Member will cease in Canada. Membership in Canada will only be granted by Canadian Members to those who have followed proper protocol to receive their membership. As Canada is the Mother Country, we will also grant  membership to other countries who have committed to follow the Rock Machine Canada Constitution. We were founded in Canada. Quebec was and will always be the Mother Chapter. We are brothers from many different backgrounds, united under the Eagle by our beliefs. We govern as brothers under a true democracy. We are a true brotherhood. Rock Machine Canada is united. We will stand tall; we will stand proud. We will stand until the end of time. Much respect to all brothers for their hard work, dedication to our club, and courage to rebuild the greatest club on earth." In 2022 , Suat's Rock Machine faction changed the clubs official emblem and created a new three-piece patch with no association to the rest of the club, while still denouncing the rest of the official Rock Machine club. His website was subsequently taken offline as well as the fake Rock Machine's Facebook page. Chapters worldwide. The club has more than 90 chapters worldwide. Criminal allegations and incidents. Since its rebirth, the Rock Machine maintains that it is a group of motorcycle enthusiasts and claim that it now dismisses members who are involved in known crimes or criminal activity. Any members  that do commit crimes, do so without the club's permission. Many law enforcement agencies and journalists criticize these claims. For an in-depth list on allegations and incidents please see Rock Machine MC criminal allegations and incidents.