A 74-year-old Lubbock man who served as chapter president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club has been federally charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Steven Glenn Ryals, known to the Bandidos as “Hot Tub,” was federally charged on March 2, after agents from the FBI and the Lubbock Texas Anti-Gang Center executed a search warrant on the Bandidos’ notorious Chapter clubhouse on February 27.
Inside a locked drawer of a wooden filing cabinet in an office, officers found around 3.2 pounds of suspected methamphetamine. That same office was riddled with plastic baggies, digital scales, and a concealed compartment built into a bookshelf, according to a report from the Department of Justice (DOJ). Another cabinet held a collection of Ryals’ Bandidos “paraphernalia”, clearly showing his connection to the club and status as a leader.
Ryals appeared before a Magistrate Judge in Lubbock the same day charges were filed and remains in federal custody. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison. The investigation, which was reportedly launched in early 2025, targeted Ryals and other Bandidos members after suspicions grew that the crew was moving large quantities of drugs throughout Lubbock.
The Bandidos are no strangers to federal investigations in Texas. In February of 2025, 14 members of the motorcycle gang were indicted on RICO and murder charges.
Additionally, many Waco residents still remember the infamous shootout in 2015 at a Twin Peaks restaurant with a rival motorcycle club – The Cossacks, which left 9 bikers dead and 20 injured.
Drug trafficking – meth in particular – has been a recurring theme in federal cases against the club for decades. In February 1985, a nationwide law enforcement operation resulted in the arrests of Bandidos members in Corpus Christi, Dallas, and Houston, with a total of 82 arrests across nine different states, per The New York Times, which at the time was the largest operation ever run against a motorcycle gang.
The recent arrest of Ryals adds to a long history: at 74, he is one of the oldest chapter leaders facing federal drug charges in recent memory.
The club, founded in San Leon in 1966, is estimated to have “1,500 to 2,000 in the United States and an additional 1,000 to 1,500 members internationally,” and appears to be growing worldwide.
Ryals has not entered a plea.
