Melee at Biker Fest Ends With 1 Dead, 10 Hurt

One man died and at least 10 people were injured after rival motorcycle gangs armed with daggers, baseball bats and a machine gun clashed at an indoor motorcycle and tattoo expo called the Hellraiser Ball, authorities said.

About 60 people were in custody Saturday night, and the number could grow, said Nassau County Chief of Detectives Herbert Faust.

Faust said four people were shot, one fatally, when the fight erupted about 4:15 p.m. at the Vanderbilt, a concert and catering hall.

Faust said the fight broke out between members of the Hells Angels motorcycle club, whose Long Island chapter sponsored the event, and the Pagans.

As many as 100 Pagans showed up at the event, which drew about 1,000 people, many of them Hells Angels, Faust said.

“There’s been a long-standing feud between the two motorcycle gangs,” he said. “At some point, there was a major conflict. We have gunshots, we have people stabbed, a major fight.”

Several people who fled were apprehended nearby, Nassau County Police Commissioner William Willett said.

Police also recovered daggers, baseball bats and an Uzi machine gun, Faust said.

The expo had been under surveillance by police but was not expected to be violent, he said.

One man died in surgery and two others were being treated for unspecified injuries at North Shore University Hospital in Plainview, hospital spokeswoman Betty Olt said.

Police were still looking for suspects.