Nearly 1,000 members of the Hells Angels flocked to Toronto on Thursday, under heavy police surveillance, in honor of a historic member of the group who died in December.

• Read also: Toronto: several hundred Hells Angels expected

Toronto police said on Wednesday they had been made aware of an "unsanctioned event" organized by the club, beginning in Newmarket and ending in Toronto.

Several hundred Hells Angels bikers arrived in the east end of the city on Thursday morning, according to Global News

The ride was held in honor of longtime Toronto Hells Angels member Donny Petersen, who died in December 2021 at age 74 of natural causes.

After leaving Newmarket around 11 a.m., motorcyclists headed south on Don Valley Drive before heading east on Lake Shore Boulevard East and north on Carlaw Avenue. Most of the bikers then left just before 3 p.m. and dispersed without incident.