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The Pagans Motorcycle Club was founded in Prince George’s County, Maryland, in 1959, according to a New Jersey State Commission of Investigation report. Its history includes a transition from a small fellowship to a more formally governed club, while official accounts of its organization and criminal cases must be read with care: an agency characterization, a prosecutor’s allegation and a jury conviction are not the same thing.
When and where did the Pagans Motorcycle Club begin?
The New Jersey State Commission of Investigation (SCI) traces the club’s founding to Prince George’s County, Maryland, in 1959. The report says it began as a fellowship of 13 motorcyclists and developed into a more formal organization during the 1960s, with governance, rules and traditions. The SCI report is a historical account, not a current membership directory.
What does the Pagans’ “13” mean?
The number 13 appears in two different contexts in the sources. In the SCI’s account of the club’s founding, it refers to the 13 motorcyclists in the original fellowship. Separately, a federal complaint describes a national leadership council that generally comprised 13 former chapter presidents. The complaint calls this body the “Mother Club”; its description should be understood as an investigative account, not proof of the club’s present-day structure. Federal complaint
How did the club adopt a one-percenter identity?
The SCI report connects the club’s later one-percenter identity with its adoption of an outlaw philosophy as it expanded. But the familiar story that the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) declared 99 percent of motorcyclists law-abiding should not be repeated as settled fact: the report says the AMA denied making the statement often attributed to it. That caveat complicates the popular origin story, but does not by itself establish exactly how the phrase came into use. SCI report
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How is the Pagans Motorcycle Club organized?
A federal complaint describes a chapter structure with local officers and a national leadership body. Because the account comes from a criminal complaint, it is best treated as the organization described by investigators in that proceeding—not as an independently verified or current roster.
- Chapter officers: The complaint lists a president, vice president, sergeant at arms, and secretary/treasurer for each chapter.
- National leadership: It describes national officers as part of a leadership body generally made up of 13 former chapter presidents, known as the “Mother Club.”
Federal complaint concerning the Pagans Motorcycle Club enterprise
What do official sources say about membership numbers?
The figures available describe different populations at different times. They should not be combined or presented as a current count.
| Figure | Scope and date | What it does—and does not—show |
|---|---|---|
| 40 to 60 active Pagan members | New Jersey; a 1989 SCI estimate recounted in a later SCI report | The estimate concerned chapters in Atlantic County, Elizabeth and Plainfield. It is neither a national total nor a current figure. SCI report |
| 200 to 250 members among 41 chapters in 11 states | U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division profile; estimate year not stated in the retrieved profile | This is an undated agency estimate, not a verified 2026 count. DOJ profile |
These sources do not establish a current independent count of members or chapters, or a complete current leadership roster.
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What is known about criminal cases—and what is only alleged?
Law-enforcement agencies classify the Pagans as an outlaw motorcycle gang, according to a federal complaint. That is an agency characterization; it does not mean every member has committed a crime. A complaint sets out investigative claims, while charges remain allegations unless resolved by a guilty plea or conviction.
A jury conviction in North Carolina
In a 2023 release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina reported that Christopher Lamar Baker was convicted by a jury on 17 counts involving methamphetamine, firearms and money laundering, and sentenced to 900 months. The release said court documents and evidence presented at trial described Baker supplying more than 268 kilograms of methamphetamine into the Raleigh area and surrounding East Coast states. Those details relate to Baker’s prosecution; the quantity is not a club-wide statistic. 2023 sentencing release
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Charges in New Jersey
A 2021 release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey described charges in a multi-agency investigation and allegations that included violence and drug offenses. A charge is not a conviction: the release states that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Use “prosecutors alleged” for conduct described as an accusation, and “a jury convicted” only where a conviction is reported. 2021 New Jersey release
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why the sources do not tell one simple story
The accounts serve different purposes: a state commission report traces history and cites older local estimates; a DOJ profile provides an undated national estimate; a federal complaint describes an organization while setting out investigative claims; and case releases report charges or outcomes in particular prosecutions. Keeping those categories separate prevents a dated local estimate from being mistaken for a current national count, or allegations about individuals from being generalized to all members.
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The SCI report also records Hugo “Zorro” Nieves, then vice president of the national Pagans organization, saying at a public hearing: “All I will say is that it is not the policy of this club for anybody to engage in any criminal activity.” That is Nieves’s stated position, not independent evidence about specific events or a substitute for court findings. SCI report
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