Claus Bork Hansen

Claus Barrit Bork Hansen (31 December 1963 – 21 March 2001), nicknamed "Karate Claus", was a Danish outlaw biker and gangster who served as the European sergeant-at-arms of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, as well as the president of the club's Hedehusene-based Mideast chapter. He was later expelled from the Bandidos and was murdered by members of his former club following an internal feud.

Bandidos Hansen was raised in the western Copenhagen suburb of Hedehusene. Following a meteoric rise in the ranks of the Bandidos, he remained a senior member of the club for five to six years, serving as the European sergeant-at-arms in Marseille, France, before returning to Denmark, where he was allegedly a candidate for the Bandidos' national presidency. During the Nordic Biker War in Denmark, from 1995 until 1997, Hansen was personally appointed as the bodyguard of European president Jim Tinndahn, with whom he travelled to France and Australia. Hansen opposed the peace treaty with the Hells Angels which ended the biker war in September 1997, following which he became president of the Bandidos "Mideast" chapter in Hedehusene. He began to fall out of favour with the Bandidos leadership, however, partly due to his refusal to keep a low profile. Hansen reportedly had issues with Tinndahn's "militant" leadership style, and sought more room for individualism within the club. He was a well known figure in Hedehusene and was perceived as a physically large man who sported a black beard and wore a long, black fur coat, but who had a kind and outgoing personality. Hansen was known for his eccentric behaviour and would often walk in the street with his pet monkey on his shoulder. He was nicknamed "Karate Claus" due to his prowess in martial arts.

An internal feud in the Bandidos began in the summer of 2000 following the expulsion of Hansen's close friend, Mickey Borgfjord Larsen, in August 2000. Hansen was warned by Bandidos president Jim Tinndahn that he should resign before being expelled from the club in "bad standing". He responded to Tinndahn by saying that he would not hand in his "colors", and that if the Bandidos wished to recover their property, they may attempt to do so. Investigators determined that there were five gunmen involved, with 19 of the shots being fired from a single pistol and the remaining seven being fired from an additional two pistols and two shotguns. One of the shots was a coup de grâce fired into Hansen's head at point-blank range. The killers fled the scene in a stolen black Audi, which was later found burnt out. The weapons used in the shooting — a Chinese 9mm Norinco pistol, a 9mm Star Model BM pistol, a Czech-made 9mm Taurus pistol, and two Brazilian-made pump-action shotguns; a Winchester, and a Remington — were later recovered; some of the guns had been partially dismantled in an attempt to destroy evidence. Hansen was under investigation for protection racketeering at the time of his death. The police had warned him several times, as late as the day before, that he was on the Bandidos' hit list and offered him protection, which he refused.

Damsgaard also received rape and death threats after Hansen's murder, which she reported to the homicide division of the Copenhagen police who were investigating the shooting. The HAMC leadership agreed at the meeting with senior Bandidos members that the Bandidos could kill Hansen. On 12 April 2002, Jens Christian Thorup was sentenced to life in prison for the killing at the Eastern High Court. The twelve jurors and three magistrates also decided that he should be admitted to a psychiatric hospital when the Judicial Council determined he was mentally ill. On 15 January 2003, the Supreme Court ruled that his sentence should be reduced to sixteen years in prison. The other three suspects – Kent "Kemo" Sørensen, Karl Martin Thorup and Peter Buch Rosenberg – were acquitted of charges of murder and conspiracy to murder on 11 April 2002.

Hansen had made a pact with Mickey Borgfjord Larsen in which they both vowed to take revenge in the event of one another's murder. After Hansen's assassination, Larsen threatened the lives of several high-ranking Bandidos and was himself subsequently killed in a car bombing at Rigshospitalet Glostrup on 17 September 2003.