https://www.bakersfield.com/news/he...955efb0-5aa6-11ef-9039-fbe7b72c918d.htmlHells Angels: First witness testifies to order of events at preliminary hearing
The 69-year-old man who moved into the former Hells Angels Motorcycle Club’s clubhouse did not have a problem with members from the group coming to collect club property the first time.
However, when members of the club allegedly started taking items that did not belong to them and threatening the victim not to contact law enforcement, James Dickens began to fear for his life.
According to testimony given by Kern County Sheriff's Deputy Jesse Turner during the preliminary hearing Wednesday for four of the seven arrested Hells Angels members, the group would return to the home located on North Chester Avenue five times to rob Dickens.
The preliminary hearing for defendants Ricardo Alvarez, Armando Villasenor, Joshua Zavala and Joshua Vaughn began Wednesday with prosecutor Jordan Houle’s first witness.
Alvarez, Villasenor, Zavala and Vaughn are all charged with one count of first-degree robbery of a house, one count of assault with a firearm on a person, one count of false imprisonment of an elderly adult and one count of participation in a street gang.
Alvarez and Vaughn are both also charged with one count of preventing or dissuading a victim. Alvarez also is charged with felony criminal threats.
In addition, Joseph Richard Allen Soto, Joseph Robert Soto and John David Seeger are also charged with first-degree robbery of an inhabited house, assault with a firearm on a person, false imprisonment of an elderly person and participation in a street gang.
All seven defendants pleaded not guilty to all the charges. Soto, Soto and Seeger have their hearing on a different day. In court Wednesday, Turner described the robberies as told to him by Dickens.
Before March 1, several members of Hells Angels Motorcycle Club came over to the house to “collect club property” and before they left, Dickens said, they dumped bulk items in his backyard, which upset the landlord, according to Turner’s testimony.
When Alvarez, Villasenor, Zavala, Soto, Soto and Seeger returned on March 1, Dickens told them they needed to clean the mess they left in his backyard. Alvarez jumped the fence and punched Dickens in the head and the rest of the group ripped up the gate, Turner testified.
Turner said Alvarez then pointed a gun at Dickens and forced him to walk toward the porch. Once they were close enough to the front door, Dickens tried to reach for his gun inside the house and Alvarez allegedly punched him again and said “that was stupid.”
Villasenor and Zavala were then instructed to guard him, Turner said. Alvarez had given Villasenor a deadbolt hammer to guard Dickens while others took items from the home. The members allegedly took a motorcycle that belonged to Casey Wootten, a woman who lived in the house, Turner said.
After the group was finished, Turner said, they commanded Dickens to walk away in a different direction from which they left.
Before they left, Alvarez threatened Dickens and asked him: “Have you ever smelled a burning body before?” According to Turner’s testimony, Alvarez threatened to burn the home down with Dickens inside if Dickens tried to call law enforcement.
On March 2, Alvarez, Villasenor and Zavala returned to the house and placed Dickens in a vehicle while they took more personal items from his home. Turner testified that the three took Dickens' phone to make sure he did not contact law enforcement. Turner said there was also an incident on March 3.
A month had passed since the first three incidents, but on April 10, Vaughn and Seeger returned. Dickens told Turner he was not going to stand for the group stealing from him anymore and armed himself with a knife.
However, Vaughn pulled a firearm out of the truck the pair arrived in and Dickens dropped the knife. The two took Casey Wootten’s younger brother, James Wootten’s, motorcycle, according to Turner’s testimony.
The next day, Zavala and an unidentified prospect for the Hells Angels came to the house and took a signed Willy Nelson guitar that belonged to Casey Wootten, Turner said. Before they left, Zavala punched Dickens in the eye and his vision went black, according to Turner’s testimony.
The defense attorneys in this case, Tony Lidgett, Gabriel Godinez, Victor Nasser and Andrew Lockhart, all objected to Turner’s statement about Zavala allegedly blinding Dickens, among several objections they made throughout the day.
Lidgett is representing Alvarez, Godinez is representing Villasenor, Nasser is representing Zavala and Lockhart is representing Vaughn. All the defendants appeared in court Wednesday and occasionally spoke to their attorneys or passed notes to their attorneys.
The defense attorneys did not get to cross examine Turner on Wednesday and will have an opportunity on Thursday. The prosecutor intends to call several other witnesses to testify and it is estimated the hearing could take up to two full days in court.
