Pubdate: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 Source: Montreal Gazette (CN QU) Copyright: 2009 Canwest Publishing Inc. Contact: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/letters.html Website: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/274 Author: William Marsden Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?188 (Outlaw Bikers) ANTI-GANG LAW PUSHED TO LIMIT Roundup 'Wipes Hells Off Map' - Prosecutor When about 2,000 police officers targeted 156 Hells Angels and their associates from across Quebec yesterday, what they were really doing was indulging in some belated spring cleaning. Eight years after investigators stormed the barricades of the Hells Angels-affiliated Nomads and swept up 139 outlaw bikers in what came to be known as Operation Springtime 2001, police finally have finished the job. By cracking down yesterday on the 111 full-patch Hells Angels left in Quebec, plus 45 associate gang members, police have essentially eradicated the five remaining Quebec chapters of the world's most powerful outlaw biker gang. There are, however, worrying peculiarities with this roundup that could stymie even the most seasoned prosecutor and return many gang members to the street. The issues are the sheer enormity of the catch, plus the fact prosecutors appear to be pushing Canada's anti-gang law to its limits. Yesterday's arrests mean the final chapter of the biker war that saw 164 killings from 1994 to 2002 is about to unfold in a new series of megatrials. "As far as the Hells Angels are concerned, (this operation) wipes them off the map," said a prosecutor, who would speak only if his name was not used. In 2001, Operation Springtime targeted the all-powerful Nomads, led by their notorious war leader and prison-guard killer, Maurice (Mom) Boucher. Now Operation SharQc 2009 (Strategie Hells Angels Region Quebec) has vacuumed up the province's remaining Angels and charged them with drug trafficking, 22 murders plus conspiracy to murder rival gang members in the Rock Machine, the Bandidos, the Dark Circle and the Alliance in a war that lasted from 1994 to 2002. Hells Angels rules dictate that every chapter must have at least six members on the street at a given time. Yesterday's arrests basically mean the gang's chapters in Montreal, Trois Rivieres, Quebec City, Sherbrooke and the so-called South Chapter can no longer field troops and therefore can no longer exist as chartered Hells Angels franchises. "Unless they get bail, these chapters are gone," the source said. There's not much chance of bail. Charges of murder, conspiracy and participating in a criminal organization mean the vast majority of the accused will await their trials in prison. Still, prosecutors face an uphill battle. With 156 defendants lumped into one case file, defence lawyers could have a field day tying the court procedures into knots. "The key is, you must not lose control," said Yves Berthiaume, a retired prosecutor with more than 30 years' experience in murder and gang trials. "When 12 defence lawyers want to disrupt proceedings, there is nothing the prosecution can do. It's a tough game." He said he expects the accused will eventually be parcelled off into separate trials. But that might not be so easy. One look at the charge sheet shows the problems that a megatrial could pose. The murder conspiracy charge, for example, has 125 defendants. Among the 22 separate murders is the killing of Renaud Jomphe on Oct. 18, 1996. That alone has 94 defendants. "I think they are going too far," Berthiaume said. "It was really reaching the limits in the last trials" after Operation Springtime 2001. In those megatrials, prosecutors divided the accused into small groups ranging from nine to 17 people. But the charges specific to each group allowed an easy dicing up of the files. This latest charge sheet is a more blanket indictment based largely on anti-gang law. Berthiaume said the prosecutors are regarding the Hells Angels and their associates as if they were members of a battle group in which each person agreed to the rules of engagement - and that meant murder. "If you are a member and those rules are known, then you are part of the murders," he said. "If murder is what the gang does and you are part of the gang and you can prove that is the law of the gang, then you are guilty." Not only could that be tough to prove, but with so many defendants, the trials could be unmanageable. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom