Two reported members of the Mongols motorcycle gang were ordered Dec. 5 to stand trial for felony assault for allegedly pulling knives on two people outside a Chula Vista drug store.
Neither victim was injured or stabbed, but the pair are charged with assault with a deadly weapon. It includes the allegation the incident occurred to benefit a criminal street gang, said Deputy District Attorney David McNees.
Sadoc Sanchez, 53, and Lance Simpson, 47, were held to answer the charges in the preliminary hearing conducted by Chula Vista Superior Court Judge Alvin Green Jr. They were also ordered to trial on a charge they illegally possessed a police baton.
Both Sanchez and Simpson are free on bond and will next appear in court on Jan. 7 to set a trial date. They have pleaded not guilty.
McNees said the victims are not rival gang members and they did not know either Sanchez or Simpson. The incident happened around 8 p.m. on Feb. 1 on Third Avenue near a CVS Pharmacy in Chula Vista. Part of the incident was captured on security cameras, but footage was not shown in court.
Chula Vista Police and the San Diego Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested both men March 21 at Sanchez’s home in Chula Vista.
