Solano County Hells Angels Member Pleads Guilty to Possessing Firearm as a Felon

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jaime Alvarez, 52, of Vallejo, California, pleaded guilty yesterday to unlawfully possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony crime, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. 

According to court documents, on December 8, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Alvarez’s home as part of an investigation into a brutal beating at the clubhouse for the Vallejo chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Specifically, in October 2021, two different victims—both of whom were members of a different motorcycle club that is considered a “puppet” (or subordinate) club of the Hells Angels—were beaten by Alvarez and other club members based on perceived infractions of the Hells Angels’ rules.

During the December 2021 search of Alvarez’s Vallejo home, law enforcement found several firearms, including a Glock 27 .40 SW caliber handgun. Alvarez has prior felony convictions, which prohibit him from possessing firearms.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, the Vallejo Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron D. Pennekamp and Jason Hitt are prosecuting the case.

Alvarez is scheduled to be sentenced on March 7, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd. Alvarez faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. 

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.