Reports of more gunshots in London, Ont., as tensions between Hells Angels and street gang, said to be the FU Crew, continue. The FU crew are friendly with the Outlaws and the Outlaws and Hells Angels are never friendly.

It’s been a nasty week for the London, Ont. Hells Angels after one member was shot and a string of businesses were torched. Reports have speculated it’s the FU (who can guess what that stands for?) street gang, which has ties to the Outlaw Motorcycle Club. Now the city and anyone in the province interested in bikers is watching to see what the club does. The attacks have been blamed on street gangs with a strong GTA influence. So far the Angels haven’t struck back and it’s news now even when the Angels do nothing.

Three men are awaiting bail on gun charges after a London, Ont. Hells Angel was shot. The shooting comes after a week-long bombing binge against biker rub-and-tugs and the venerable Flesh Gordon’s strip club. It’ll be interesting how their security goes behind bars. The London Free Press reports that there are seven street gangs operating in London, aside from the more established Hells Angels and Outlaws. When I went to school in London, the town seemed to like its reputation as a slightly stodgy insurance town. Back when I went to Western, I remember a senior police officer denying there was any organized crime in the city. Now there are more biker clubs and street gangs (nine) than there are teams in the CFL (eight).

All the heat isn’t from the rubbing of staffers at London, Ont. strip clubs. In London, a  Hells Angel is shot, along with a female companion. A string of strip clubs in London and St. Thomas are attacked. And the folks arrested are from a street gang, not the Outlaws? The times are a-changing.

Fires at a strip club and other businesses connected to the London, Ont. Hells Angels. Now more violence. Safe to say things are heating up in the Forest City.

You don’t rise up in policing by being a quote machine. Witness the quotes from the London, Ont. police, when they finally break their silence about a string of fires set at biker-related businesses in London, Ont. over the weekend.

It wasn’t so long ago that the wildest thing in London, Ont. was when someone varied the pinstripes or lapel widths of a business suit. London’s now a fascinating spot in the biker world, with one of the most organized Hells Angels chapters and real competition from the Outlaws. These recent fire-bombings suggest the Angels won’t have an easy ride.

Few people in the mainstream know about it. Fewer still can pronounce its name. But the ‘Ndrangheta (en-dran-getta) – or Calabrian Mafia – is for real.

I’ve heard an argument from old school bikers that they weren’t really organized crime because they weren’t that organized. The ‘Ndrangheta is both, to the point that one of their biggest problems is now to launder their money.

There was a time – there must have been – when being an outlaw meant avoiding the courts. Not so any more, even in wildest Winnipeg.

Just how did the old Niagara Hells Angels get their hands on confidential police documents? The Crown has managed to win a new trial against an officer they claim is dirty. The officer has maintained that the Angels broke into the police station. Stay tuned.