Police mobilize for Hells Angels funeral SAN FRANCISCO Hundreds of bikers could form huge funeral procession

A small memorial is set up on the sidewalk of the scene where Mark "Papa" Guardado, president of the local chapter of the Hell's Angels, was shot and killed on Tuesday Sept. 3, 2008, near 24th Street and Treat Avenue. less A small memorial is set up on the sidewalk of the scene where Mark "Papa" Guardado, president of the local chapter of the Hell's Angels, was shot and killed on Tuesday Sept. 3, 2008, near 24th Street and Treat ... more Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Police mobilize for Hells Angels funeral 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Police are bracing for what could be the longest two-wheeled funeral procession ever to hit the Bay Area.

No one knows exactly how many mourners in leather jackets are going to attend services Sunday and Monday for the slain president of the Hells Angels' San Francisco chapter, Mark "Papa" Guardado.

Some say there could be 1,000 Hells Angels, some say more.

"However many there are, we're going to be ready," said Officer Shawn Chase, spokesman for the California Highway Patrol.

Guardado, 46, was shot Sept. 2 outside a bar at 24th Street and Treat Avenue after what police described as a "wrestling match" with the gunman, who fled on a motorcycle. Christopher Ablett, 37, of Modesto, a member of the rival Mongols Motorcycle Club, is wanted on suspicion of murder.

Little is known about how the Hells Angels plan to mourn their beloved leader. There will be a vigil Sunday at 7 p.m. and a funeral Monday at 10 a.m. at Duggan's Serra Mortuary at 500 Westlake Ave. in Daly City, with interment to follow at Cypress Lawn cemetery in Colma. The two-wheeled funeral procession could be the largest in Bay Area history.

The undertakers are expecting more people than the chapel can hold and plan to install loudspeakers in the parking lot to accommodate the overflow crowd, authorities said. Hells Angels members from around the country are expected to attend.

Daly City police will be on duty at the mortuary, and Colma police will be on duty at the cemetery. San Francisco police will be on duty if the funeral procession passes through San Francisco or stops at the Hells Angels clubhouse on Tennessee Street, where Guardado lived.

Highway Patrol officers will be everyplace.

"We will have as many officers as we need," Chase said. "We could have a couple of hundred ready. It's a fluid situation. We don't want to see any conflicts, especially with other motorcycle groups. Things can get out of hand fast."

Daly City police Capt. Mike Edwards said a commander had a "cordial meeting" with club members at the funeral home earlier in the week but did not learn exactly what the Angels were planning to do. Hells Angels members at the clubhouse declined to comment on funeral plans and asked reporters and photographers to leave.

"It's difficult to judge how to prepare," Edwards said. "They said they want to take care of their own. That's OK. We're here to help. We're not here to tell anyone what to do."

If Hells Angels turn out in the number that some are predicting, Edwards said it could be the largest funeral procession in Daly City history, certainly the largest one on motorcycles.

"They're not telling us the route of the procession," Edwards said. "We're going to keep things as orderly as possible."