California jury strips logo from Mongols motorcycle gang
SANTA ANA, Calif. — Federal prosecutors say a California jury has decided the Mongols motorcycle gang should be stripped of its trademarked logo.
Jurors in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana on Friday found that the government could seize control of the group’s trademark.
The jury previously found the Mongol Nation, the entity that owns the image of a Mongol warrior on a chopper, guilty of racketeering and conspiracy.
Prosecutors argued the Los Angeles-area based group is a criminal enterprise responsible for drug dealing and murder and the logo was at the core of the gang’s identity.
A lawyer for the group says the club doesn’t tolerate criminal activity and kicks out bad members.
The first-of-its-kind ruling is intended to prevent members from wearing the cherished patches.
The Mongols have had several encounters in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada, including a deadly fight in Laughlin.
In the early morning of April 27, 2002, during the annual Laughlin River Run, a fight broke out between rivals Mongols and Hells Angels at Harrah’s casino. Two men were shot and another was stabbed to death.
Hells Angels and Mongols also were involved in a brawl at Special Memory Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas in October 2006, which resulted in dozens of charges.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal contributed to this story.