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Feds say 4 missing CA Hells Angels were illegally cremated

By KTVU staff
Published  October 15, 2023 10:55pm PDT
Crime and Public Safety
KTVU FOX 2

Feds say 4 missing CA Hells Angels were illegally cremated, including East Bay man

Federal prosecutors say four missing Hells Angels were illegally cremated in a funeral home in Fresno, including a man from Contra Costa County.

FRESNO, Calif. - Federal prosecutors say four missing Hells Angels were illegally cremated in a funeral home in Fresno.

The four cremated Angels include a man from Contra Costa County and another from Alameda County, according to the Mercury News.

According to documents filed in court, 54-year-old Fresno Hells Angel Merl Hefferman was involved in the secret cremation of fellow member Joel Silva in 2014. Silva was a Livermore resident.

Federal prosecutors say Silva's body was never found after he was murdered for allegedly "creating problems" for other Hells Angels.

Arthur Carasis, a Contra Costa County resident, was a member of the motorcycle club who was last seen in Madera County in 2016. Prosecutors believe that he was cremated illegally too.

They suspect two other members of the group were also illegally cremated.

Hefferman has been charged with obstructing justice in Silva's case and prosecutors are seeking a sentence of at least seven years.