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Former biker released from jail
MONTREAL - Alain Dubois, 45, convinced the National Parole Board he
was merely the victim of incredibly bad luck and timing when on Oct.
10, the Sûreté du Québec moved in and arrested him and three others
in a fraud investigation where tractors were being purchased from
stores by people using bogus cheques. (Montreal Gazette)
PREVIOUS:
Biker on parole picked up again |
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Stalling
tactics during trial affect sentencing of 9 bikers |
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MIKE
KING
Montreal
Gazette
March
05, 2004 |
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Quebec
Superior Court Justice Pierre Béliveau may have set a Canadian
precedent yesterday in sentencing nine convicted Hells Angels and
affiliated gang members |
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Normally,
the time that accused spend in custody awaiting the end of their
trial is counted as double toward their jail time, but in this case,
Béliveau treated the nine months that the megatrial lasted as
straight time. |
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The
time that the nine spent in custody from the time of their spring
2001 arrests until the start of the trial last June will count as
double, however. |
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"This
has to be the first time in Canada that there has been a reproach
for the length of a trial," defence lawyer Lucie Joncas told
reporters in the hallway of the Gouin Blvd. courthouse specially
built for the trial. |
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In
handing down his 68-page decision, Béliveau chastised the defence
lawyers for unnecessarily dragging out the trial through their
stalling tactics. |
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"This
is a most surprising issue," added Joncas, "an issue that
should be definitely addressed." |
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The
lawyer for Sébastien Beauchamp said it will be one of two grounds
on which to appeal her client's sentence. |
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She
suggested that sending him behind bars for 13 years after he was
acquitted last month of conspiracy to commit murder is too severe. |
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Like
his co-accused, Beauchamp was found guilty of conspiracy to traffic
in drugs and gangsterism. The sentences included: |
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Richard
"Dick" Mayrand, 40, Nomad - sentenced to 22 years, reduced
to 16 years, 9 months after time in custody. |
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Luc
"Bordel" Bordeleau, 43, Nomad - 20 years, down to 14
years, 9 months. |
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Sylvain
Moreau, 35, Rocker - 20 years, down to 14 years, 9 months. |
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Bruno
Lefebvre, 34, Nomad - 18 years, down to 12 years, 9 months. |
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André
Couture, 38, Rocker - 18 years, down to 12 years, 9 months. |
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Érik
"Le Pif" Fournier, 33, Rocker - 18 years, down to 12
years, 9 months. |
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Sébastien
"Bass" Beauchamp, 30, Rockers - 13 years, down to 7 years,
9 months. |
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Ronald
"Popo" Paulin, 46, retired Rocker - 12 years, down to 6
years, 6 months. |
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Alain
Dubois, 42, former Rocker - 10 years, down to 9 years, 9 months. |
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Crown
prosecutor Madeleine Giauque had sought sentences ranging from 14 to
29 years, but was satisfied with the jail time meted out by the
judge. |
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"It's
a clear message to everybody that society won't tolerate or accept
such criminal behaviour," Giauque said. |
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Copyright 2004
Montreal
Gazette |
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Two
more elite Hells plead guilty |
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PAUL
CHERRY
Montreal
Gazette
March
05, 2004 |
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Two
more members of the Hells Angels elite Nomads chapter who terrorized
anyone who got in their way when it came to selling drugs in
Montreal pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy charges. |
Michel
Rose
Credit:
Gazette |
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Michel
Rose, 48, and André Chouinard, 44, appeared relaxed as they entered
their pleas to charges of conspiring to murder members of rival
gangs like the Rock Machine and the Bandidos between 1995 and 2001.
They also admitted to importing and trafficking in drugs, and
participating in gang activity.
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Crown
prosecutor André Vincent and lawyers representing Rose and
Chouinard made joint sentencing recommendations of 22 years each. |
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Justice
Gilles Hébert said he would render his decision on sentences
Monday. |
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Both
men were facing possible extradition to the U.S. on the importation
charges, but as part of a plea bargain Vincent agreed to charge them
here. |
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Rose
has been in custody since his arrest on March 28, 2001. Every day
spent behind bars waiting for his case to end counts as two, so if Hébert
accepts the joint recommendation, he would have 16 years left to
serve. Chouinard, who quit the gang in 2000, was arrested only last
April after he had gone on the lam and avoided police for more than
two years.
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Vincent
asked Chouinard serve 20 years on top of the time he has already
served. |
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Including
yesterday's guilty pleas, 13 full-patch members and prospects of the
Nomads chapter have been convicted in connection with a police sweep
called Operation Springtime 2001. Two other members are currently on
trial. |
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The
importation charges to which Rose and Chouinard pleaded guilty were
filed only yesterday and concern their dealings with a Colombian
woman named Sandra Antelo.
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In
November, Antelo testified for the Crown in a different Hells Angels
trial. Antelo, who had begun smuggling cocaine in Bolivia in 1977,
said she regretted the day she hooked up with the Hells. |
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She
said she believed dealing with the Nomads cost the life of her
husband, Raymond Craig, and very nearly ended hers. |
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Antelo
was introduced to Rose through a lawyer after she told the attorney
she was looking for someone with whom to import cocaine. Within four
months of their introduction, Rose had set up a meeting where they
discussed the logistics of smuggling cocaine from Colombia to Miami,
Fla., and then into Canada. |
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They
agreed to bring in 200 kilograms of cocaine, but Rose did not
initially reveal he was with the Hells Angels. |
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Antelo
eventually came to trust Rose, who introduced her to Chouinard. Only
when her husband stepped in to help with a maritime transport of
2,400 kilos of cocaine did Antelo learn she was doing business with
the Hells Angels. |
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"My
husband did not want to work with the Hells Angels. He had never
worked with them before and he never wanted to," Antelo said in
November. |
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"My
husband knew how these people worked. He said from the beginning
they were not the kind of group he wanted to work with." |
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Antelo
said her husband agreed to work with the Hells Angels only because
he assumed it was too late for her to back out. |
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By
the time Antelo and Craig were working on a sixth deal with Rose and
Chouinard, problems began emerging. There were disputes over who
would assume certain costs. |
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Antelo
said by June 2000, things between her and Chouinard were not going
well. |
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She
said Chouinard cancelled a Monday morning meeting that month and
asked if they could meet the following day. |
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As
she was driving to the meeting and about to get on to Highway 15,
someone in a passing vehicle opened fire on her car. Antelo escaped
the attack, suffering only cuts to her face from broken glass. |
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She
said she called Chouinard, but he merely listened to what she had to
say and then hung up. Antelo testified she packed up her kids, left
the country and later decided to become a witness for the Drug
Enforcement Agency in the United States. |
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On
Aug. 29, 2000, almost three months after Antelo escaped death on the
highway, her husband was fatally shot outside a bar in Ste. Adèle. |
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Both
Craig's homicide and the attempted murder of Antelo have never been
solved. |
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Copyright 2004 Montreal
Gazette |
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Two
more Hells Angels sentenced
MONTREAL
- Andre Chouinard, 44, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and
Michel Rose, 48, was given a 16-year term. |
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Nine
Hells Angels and associates convicted of total of 26 criminal
charges |
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PIERRE
ST-ARNAUD
Canadian
Press
March
2, 2004 |
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MONTREAL
- In what one lawyer called a legal precedent in Canada, a jury
convicted nine Hells Angels and associates on gangsterism charges
Monday and found them guilty on 26 out of a total of 27 criminal
charges. |
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The
accused, who were arrested in a major police crackdown on biker
gangs in 2001, each faced three charges - gangsterism, drug
trafficking and conspiracy to commit murder. Eight of the men were
convicted on all three counts, while the ninth was acquitted of the
murder charge. |
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Crown
prosecutor Madeleine Giauque praised the jurors, who heard about 125
days of testimony in the year-long trial. |
Luc
Bordeleau |
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"They
did a marvellous job," Giauque said. "They were attentive
all the time and they were very dedicated to their job." |
André
Couture |
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Previous
convictions on gangsterism were handed down by judges alone. |
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"It's
the first time anywhere in Canada a jury had to decide about a
verdict on gangsterism," Giauque noted. "That's the proof
that it's possible." |
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Giauque
said she believes mega-trials are here to stay. |
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"Unfortunately,
crime is organized in Quebec and I think that police, Justice
Department officials, including the courts, have to be organized to
deliver an efficient fight against organized crime." |
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Sentencing
arguments will be heard March 22. The drug and murder charges each
carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, while the gangsterism
convictions carry a maximum sentence of 14 years, to be served
consecutively. |
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Roger
Carriere, another Crown prosecutor, said he believes police
videotapes of the accused holding meetings proved crucial. |
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"You
see people meeting to commit crimes," Carriere said.
"They're all meeting around the table. You can't get better
evidence than that." |
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Quebec
Justice Minister Marc Bellemare welcomed the verdict on Monday. |
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"It
shows that the mega-trials are an effective weapon against organized
crime," he said in a statement. |
Bruno Lefebvre |
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The
nine accused were members of the Hells or the Rockers, a farmclub of
the Angels. |
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They
were charged with conspiring between 1995 and 2001 to kill people
who were in rival gangs like the Rock Machine and the Bandidos. The
Hells were locked in a war with their rivals for supremacy in the
illegal-drug trade. |
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The
trial made headlines in August 2002 after Superior Court Justice
Jean-Guy Boilard withdrew as the presiding judge four months into
proceedings. |
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Boilard
said he did not have the moral authority to preside over the trial
because the Canadian Judicial Council criticized him for the way he
had blasted a lawyer in another case for mediocre work. |
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When
Justice Pierre Beliveau took over in 2003, he decided to abort the
trial so it could start again with a fresh jury. |
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Initially,
there were 17 defendants. Seven later pleaded guilty and one avoided
trial for health reasons. |
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The
charges resulted from a police operation called Operation Springtime
2001, which ended seven years of battles in the streets of Montreal
between the gangs. |
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The
trial's long hours exacted a toll on the lawyers involved in the
case. Some commented bitterly on the confrontational atmosphere that
characterized disputes between the prosecutors and defence lawyers. |
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Defence
lawyer Lucie Joncas, whose client Sebastien Beauchamp was the only
one of the accused to get the one acquittal, expressed some
satisfaction. |
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"Obviously
I'm relieved that just because you're a member of the Rockers
doesn't mean you necessarily are involved in any criminal
activity," Joncas said. |
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"I
think it's important there was a distinction made between being a
member and committing a criminal offence." |
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Pierre
Panaccio, who represented several of the convicted bikers, said he
accepted the verdict and felt the jurors performed their duties
fairly. |
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"The
system being what it is, the only thing left for us is to argue for
a sentence to obtain the best possible result for our clients,"
said Panaccio, who refused to speculate on the eventual sentence his
clients would receive. |
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Giauque
said six of the nine still face first-degree murder charges. |
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Asked
what the first thing was to race through her mind as the verdicts
were read out, Giauque replied: "Holidays." |
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The
trial was held at a specially built $16.5-million courthouse in the
city's north end. Another Hells mega-trial held at the same place
ended last fall with nine people pleading guilty to gangsterism,
drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit murder. |
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Other
mega-trials scheduled for Winnipeg and Edmonton in recent years
never got going because of plea bargains and a judge's decision to
stay charges on the basis the trial had been unreasonably delayed. |
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© The
Canadian Press 2004 |
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