Mel Chancey - Former Hells Angels Chicago Chapter President | SRS #303

TL;DR

Mel Chancey recounts his journey from Catholic altar boy to youngest Hells Angels Chicago chapter president, through federal prison and complete Christian transformation.

Key Points

• 1.Mel grew up in Elsup, Illinois, a tight-knit Catholic family 10 steps from the church. His father coached his baseball teams, his mother volunteered at church and ran concession stands — they were community pillars.
• 2.He was expelled at 16 for punching his principal. The principal spoke disrespectfully about his mother during a disciplinary meeting, and Mel jumped the desk and fled through neighborhoods before police caught up at home.
• 3.Mel became a father at nearly 17 in a strict Catholic household. His girlfriend Jenny, two and a half years older, was a neighbor of the biker who would recruit him — he felt no fear, only resolve to provide.
• 4.His entry into biker culture started at Jay's Body Shop, a $5-a-month barn gym. Two tattooed members of the Hell's Henchmen trained there and mentored him on lifting, unknowingly pulling him toward the club.
• 5.He began riding Harleys at 16 and was using testosterone and anabolics by 19. By age 24 he weighed 275 lbs, growing from a 180 lb surfer build through concrete work, heavy training, and anabolics.
• 6.He lied about his age to join the Hell's Henchmen, who required members to be 21. His sponsor Al told him to say he was 21; Mel came clean in the room and was made a hangaround instead, becoming a prospect within months.
• 7.The hangaround-to-prospect pipeline involved guarding bikes and standing outside bathrooms during meetings. Full membership required a club vote; Mel moved through unusually fast as early skirmishes with the DC Eagles club proved his loyalty.
• 8.Mel became the youngest president in Hells Angels history after the Hell's Henchmen merged with the Angels. He ran the Chicago chapter through over a decade of outlaw biker warfare involving bombings, shootings, and stabbings.
• 9.His clubhouse was hit by what he calls the third-largest bomb in US history at the time. The six-year war with the Outlaws motorcycle club put him on the front lines, with an ATF agent describing him as a 'true believer' whose mission was elimination of the enemy.
• 10.He caught a federal RICO indictment in 2004 with a potential 24-year sentence at 85%. Held without bond, he got on his knees in federal holding and surrendered fully to God — his second time facing prison, and the turning point.
• 11.He served 30 months of a nine-year federal sentence and came home in 2008. After his first prison stint he gave God '70% surrender' — quit the club and drugs but continued womanizing while running a large Chicago nightclub.
• 12.He was baptized in 2009 by his 41-year friend Pastor Steve Trolio at the Firehouse Chapel. Trolio had known Mel since age 16 and continued praying for him throughout the Hell's Angels years, even as congregation members left over it.
• 13.Mel baptized NFL running back Cody Alfred for the first time ever in a tidal creek in South Carolina. The baptism happened at Mel's annual military appreciation weekend where they raised $180,000 for veterans; bull sharks in the water made it more nerve-wracking than the ceremony itself.
• 14.The John 3:16 Devotional Team was created six years ago at Hulk Hogan's suggestion. Terry Bollea told Mel to record the Jesus Calling morning devotional and post it; the DM response was overwhelming and he now does it Monday through Friday.
• 15.Jon Bernthal and The Rock are producing a movie about Mel's life. Today Mel is married for 16 years, has a daughter nearly 40, two granddaughters, and runs operations in the bodybuilding industry through the IFBB and NPC alongside his Core Medical Foundation work.