I was down in Everett, Washington today for an interesting news conference in a 1987 unsolved murder of a Victoria couple.

The case was brutal – Jay Cook, 20, and Tanya Van Cuylenborg, 18 – were tied up with zip ties by a well-prepared killer who met them while they were on an overnight road trip to Seattle. Their bodies were dumped in different Washington State counties, thus beginning a three-decade long hunt for the killer.

New DNA technology has helped police obtain composite images of what the suspect might look like. They are hoping it will lead to a break in the case.

Here’s my story (please check the link for more photos and video:)

Tanya Van Cuylenborg, left, and Jay Cook iin undated handout photos. A sheriff’s department in Washington state may have new information linked to the 30-year-old murders of two British Columbia residents. The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office has called a news conference for Wednesday in Everett, Wash., to discuss the murders of 18-year-old Tanya Van Cuylenborg and 20-year-old Jay Cook, both from the Victoria-area.

Police in Washington state reveal new details in 1987 murder of young Victoria couple

EVERETT, Wash. — Laura Baanstra still remembers waving to her brother Jay Cook as he drove away from their Victoria home on Nov. 18, 1987 to pick up his girlfriend and head to Seattle for an overnight trip.

She never imagined it would be the last time she would see her 20-year-old sibling.

Jay’s body was found days later dumped on the side of the road in Snohomish County, covered with a blue blanket. He had been strangled.

His 18-year-old sweetheart, Tanya Van Cuylenborg, was also found slain in a ditch in neighbouring Skagit country. She had been sexually assaulted and shot in the back of the head.

For more than 30 years, detectives in both counties have worked tirelessly to find the young couple’s killer without success, despite having collected his DNA.

But they hope new DNA technology that helped create composite drawings of a person of interest in the case might lead to a breakthrough.

Baanstra, her husband Gary and sister Kelly Cook were on hand at a news conference in Everett on Wednesday where images were released of what the man may have looked like at ages 25, 45 and 65.

Baanstra said she couldn’t quite bring herself to look at the pictures of the person who likely killed her brother. But she still hopes someone might recognize the person and contact police.

“If these new pictures that this amazing new technology created triggers a memory you had — perhaps of someone who said something odd that lived in or near the Snohomish area or even Vancouver in late 1987 — please for the sake of my brother Jay, Tanya and all of our families, call it in,” she said.

“When your brother or sister, daughter or a loved one walks out the door, you have no way to know that it’s the last time you will ever see them.”

Det. Jim Scharf, of the Snohomish County cold case unit, has worked the case for the last 13 years.

He laid out a meticulous timeline that investigators have created in the decades-old case.

The pair was planning a short overnight trip to pick up furnace parts in Seattle for Jay’s father’s business.

Scharf said they caught the MV Coho ferry from Victoria to Port Angeles on Nov. 18, 1987, arriving at about 5:30 p.m. They missed a turnoff, so stopped at a local grocery store.

They got to Allen, Wash., at about 9:30 p.m. and stopped at a deli there. At 10:16 p.m., they bought a ticket for the Bremerton ferry to Seattle, which would have put them in the city about 11:30 p.m.

The pair had planned to sleep in the van near the former Kingdome stadium.

A missing person’s report was filed two days later, according to news archives.

On Nov. 24, a man walking on an isolated road near Alger, south of Bellingham, discovered Tanya’s body.

“Her autopsy revealed she had a .38-calibre gunshot wound to the back of her head,” Scharf said. “Tanya had been restrained with zip-tie-type fasteners, and she was sexually assaulted.”

The following day, her wallet, her ID, keys for the van, a pair of surgical gloves and a partial box of ammunition were found under the back porch of a Bellingham pub, he said.

The brown van that Jay and Tanya had been driving was found a block away from the pub, beside the Greyhound bus station, locked and in a parking lot.

A witness told police it had been there since Nov. 21.

On American Thanksgiving — Nov. 26, 1987 — Jay’s body was found, Scharf said, near a minimum-security prison that has since closed but was operating at the time.

More of the killer’s zip-tie restraints were found near his body.

“The person who did this came prepared to do a brutal crime,” Scharf said.

Some of the couple’s items were missing — a green backpack and black men’s jacket, as well as Tanya’s Minolta camera, which has never been found although its lens turned up at a Portland pawn shop in 1990.

Scharf said investigators hope the new composite images will finally bring the tip that closes the case.

“It has been over 30 years since this all happened, but the Snohomish County Sheriff’s office and the Skagit County Sheriff’s office have never given up hope in solving this case because we do have DNA evidence that will identify the killer,” he said.

So far that DNA has not matched anything on file in either the U.S. or Canada, Scharf said.

“We have these new clues. We believe someone out there knows something that will help us solve this terrible crime. … The smallest detail might end up being the lead we need.”

Snohomish County Investigations Capt. Jeff Miller warned that the images are not photographs, but feature the killer’s characteristics. 

He is a white male, with hazel or green eyes, possibly freckles, and possibly balding. He could have been heavier or lighter than the composites. His hair might have been longer.

“It is not 100 per cent accurate,” Miller said. 

The technology that led to the image was developed by a Virginia company called Parabon NanoLabs and has been successful in solving other cases in the U.S.

The couple’s family and friends are offering a $50,000 Cdn reward only until the end of 2018 for information leading to a DNA match.

Miller said someone out there knows who the killer is.

“Maybe you were too afraid to come forward at the time or you thought someone else already had. Now is the time to share what you may have seen or heard and bring closure to this crime,” he said.

Det.-Sgt. Jenny Sheahan-Lee of Skagit County was an 18-year-old volunteer in 1987 helping in the search of the area where Tanya’s body was found. It was emotional at the time because she was close in age to the victims. She found a shell casing that turned out to be critical evidence.

And now she is the officer in charge of her county’s part of the investigation.

“It has been very difficult because we know that behind this case there are families that are waiting for answers,” she said. “Thirty-one years is a long time for these folks to wait for any answer. So I am really hopeful that this is going to give us that lead that we need.”

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

What is Parabon Snapshot DNA Phenotyping?

Parabon Nanolabs in Virginia has been doing DNA phenotyping for the past four years. Marketed as a way for police agencies to solve cases of unidentified human remains, the process uses DNA to predict genetic ancestry, eye, hair and skin colour, freckling and face shape.

The company says they “reverse-engineer” DNA into a physical profile. The process reads tens of thousands of genetic variants or genotypes from the DNA to predict what an unidentified person looks like.

The technology was used by the Vancouver Police Department last year with DNA seized from the West End apartment where Edgar (Iggy) Leonardo, 36, was killed 15 years ago, hoping it will generate some clues about a person of interest they believe had been with the victim.

A member of the West Point Hells Angels died of a suspected overdose last week while in the middle of a court case with the B.C. Civil Forfeiture office.

Lukasz Cimoszko, 36, was found dead near Barriere, RCMP Sgt. Janelle Shoihet confirmed Monday.

She said there was nothing suspicious about the death and the B.C. Coroners Service is leading the investigation.

Coroners’ spokesman Andy Watson said he couldn’t comment. 

Social media tribute to Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, centre, who died last week. Also pictured is Hells Angel Bob Green, left, who was shot to death in October 2016 and Hells Angel Bjorn Sylvest, who died in July 2016 while house boating on Shuswap Lake.

Social media tributes were pouring in for Cimoszko, who became a full-patch member of the notorious biker gang in 2012.

Hells Angels spokesman Rick Ciarniello did not respond to requests for comment.

Cimoszko was in the middle of a court battle with the B.C. government agency over $12,270 seized when he was pulled over by Vancouver police a year ago.

According to the claim, Cimoszko’s 2015 Corvette was stopped with the engine running across from a pub on Manitoba Street on March 21, 2017.

Officers ran the plate, which showed that the Hells Angel leased the luxury vehicle. They followed the Corvette and watched it “weave within its lane and fail to signal when it changed lanes,” the claim said.

“The VPD initiated a traffic stop to confirm the driver’s sobriety.”

Cimoszko drove for another two blocks before he pulled over, even after police turned on their lights and siren, the court documents said.

He was wearing “a sweater bearing (Hells Angels Motorcycle Club) patches and the HAMC deathhead logo.” His passenger was wearing an “HAMC support lanyard.”

Vancouver officers saw a machete “in plain view lodged between the centre console and the passenger seat.” Both Cimoszko and the passenger were arrested for possession of a dangerous weapon, although neither was criminally charged.  

Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, 36, died April 12 near Barriere, B.C.

Police searched Cimoszko and found two folding knives in his pants pockets.

They also searched the vehicle and found bundles of cash, more than 240 grams of marijuana, four more knives and “documentation” related to the Hells Angels.

Most of the cash was in two packages of 250 $20 bills located in an open bag on the top of the centre console, the suit says. Two smaller loose bundles were in a black satchel in the trunk of the Corvette.

Cimoszko told police he had a medical marijuana licence to possess the pot. The next day, investigators confirmed he had a pot licence for possession of up to 150 grams and to grow 74 plants at a Langley address.

The director of civil forfeiture alleges the cash “is proceeds and an instrument of illegal activity.”

“The money has been used by Mr. Cimoszko to engage in unlawful activities which variously resulted in, or were likely to result in, the acquisition of property or an interest in property, or cause, or were likely to cause seriously bodily harm.”

A list of the alleged criminal activities included in the civil forfeiture suit includes possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of the proceeds of crime, participation in a criminal organization and commission of an offence for a criminal organization.

The director claims Cimoszko obtained the money from criminal activity and would likely use it for more crimes if it was given back to him.

In Cimoszko’s response, he says police didn’t really stop him for traffic violations, but because he’s a Hells Angel.

“Members stopped the vehicle as part of a ruse in order to engage in a fishing expedition in relation to the defendant,” his written response said. “The defendant carries on a legitimate business and collects, remits and files the necessary taxes to the appropriate government authorities.”

Cimoszko also claimed that the VPD search of his vehicle was warrantless and in violation of his Charter rights.

Phil Tawtel, Civil Forfeiture Office executive director, said he couldn’t comment on the Cimoszko case since it remains before the courts.

“As with any civil litigation, where a defendant dies during the proceeding conduct of the (case), litigation can pass to the legal representative of the estate,” he said.

Corporate records list Cimoszko as the president of two B.C. companies, both incorporated on Dec. 3, 2009. One is called Luke Contracting Ltd. of which he is the only director. The second — Exotic Auto Imports Ltd. — also lists  fellow West Point Hells Angel Larry Amero as a director.  

Hells Angel Larry Ronald Amero in file photo

Amero was charged in January with conspiracy to kill gangster rivals Sandip Duhre and Sukhveer Dhak, who died months apart in targeted 2012 shootings. He remains in pre-trial custody awaiting trial.

Cimoszko’s only B.C. conviction was in Surrey in 2002 for driving while prohibited. He got a week in jail.

Land title records show that he bought a 26th-floor apartment in downtown Vancouver in 2012 that is now assessed at $1.05 million. In addition to the leased Corvette, personal property records show Cimoszko also had leased or bought a 2016 Honda Pilot, a 2016 Harley and a 2017 Cadillac Escalade.

Meanwhile, another civil forfeiture case involving the Hells Angels is set to start in B.C. Supreme Court next Monday, more than 10 years after it was first filed.

The B.C. government wants the clubhouse of the East Vancouver, Nanaimo and Kelowna chapters forfeited, alleging they would be used for criminal activity in future if returned to the bikers. The Hells Angels are challenging the constitutionality of the province’s Civil Forfeiture Act.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

West Point Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko died near Barriere, B.C. last week of a suspected drug overdose. Now whoever is looking after his estate will have to take over his defence in a civil forfeiture case filed last year after he was pulled over carrying 240 grams of marijuana and tens of thousands of dollars.

Here’s my story:

Hells Angel facing B.C. civil forfeiture suit dies of suspected overdose

A member of the West Point Hells Angels died of a suspected overdose last week while in the middle of a court case with the B.C. Civil Forfeiture office.

Lukasz Cimoszko, 36, was found dead near Barriere, RCMP Sgt. Janelle Shoihet confirmed Monday.

She said there was nothing suspicious about the death and the B.C. Coroners Service is leading the investigation.

Coroners’ spokesman Andy Watson said he couldn’t comment. 

Social media tribute to Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, centre, who died last week. Also pictured is Hells Angel Bob Green, left, who was shot to death in October 2016 and Hells Angel Bjorn Sylvest, who died in July 2016 while house boating on Shuswap Lake.

Social media tributes were pouring in for Cimoszko, who became a full-patch member of the notorious biker gang in 2012.

Hells Angels spokesman Rick Ciarniello did not respond to requests for comment.

Cimoszko was in the middle of a court battle with the B.C. government agency over $12,270 seized when he was pulled over by Vancouver police a year ago.

According to the claim, Cimoszko’s 2015 Corvette was stopped with the engine running across from a pub on Manitoba Street on March 21, 2017.

Officers ran the plate, which showed that the Hells Angel leased the luxury vehicle. They followed the Corvette and watched it “weave within its lane and fail to signal when it changed lanes,” the claim said.

“The VPD initiated a traffic stop to confirm the driver’s sobriety.”

Cimoszko drove for another two blocks before he pulled over, even after police turned on their lights and siren, the court documents said.

He was wearing “a sweater bearing (Hells Angels Motorcycle Club) patches and the HAMC deathhead logo.” His passenger was wearing an “HAMC support lanyard.”

Vancouver officers saw a machete “in plain view lodged between the centre console and the passenger seat.” Both Cimoszko and the passenger were arrested for possession of a dangerous weapon, although neither was criminally charged.  

Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, 36, died April 12 near Barriere, B.C.

Police searched Cimoszko and found two folding knives in his pants pockets.

They also searched the vehicle and found bundles of cash, more than 240 grams of marijuana, four more knives and “documentation” related to the Hells Angels.

Most of the cash was in two packages of 250 $20 bills located in an open bag on the top of the centre console, the suit says. Two smaller loose bundles were in a black satchel in the trunk of the Corvette.

Cimoszko told police he had a medical marijuana licence to possess the pot. The next day, investigators confirmed he had a pot licence for possession of up to 150 grams and to grow 74 plants at a Langley address.

The director of civil forfeiture alleges the cash “is proceeds and an instrument of illegal activity.”

“The money has been used by Mr. Cimoszko to engage in unlawful activities which variously resulted in, or were likely to result in, the acquisition of property or an interest in property, or cause, or were likely to cause seriously bodily harm.”

A list of the alleged criminal activities included in the civil forfeiture suit includes possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of the proceeds of crime, participation in a criminal organization and commission of an offence for a criminal organization.

The director claims Cimoszko obtained the money from criminal activity and would likely use it for more crimes if it was given back to him.

In Cimoszko’s response, he says police didn’t really stop him for traffic violations, but because he’s a Hells Angel.

“Members stopped the vehicle as part of a ruse in order to engage in a fishing expedition in relation to the defendant,” his written response said. “The defendant carries on a legitimate business and collects, remits and files the necessary taxes to the appropriate government authorities.”

Cimoszko also claimed that the VPD search of his vehicle was warrantless and in violation of his Charter rights.

Phil Tawtel, Civil Forfeiture Office executive director, said he couldn’t comment on the Cimoszko case since it remains before the courts.

“As with any civil litigation, where a defendant dies during the proceeding conduct of the (case), litigation can pass to the legal representative of the estate,” he said.

Corporate records list Cimoszko as the president of two B.C. companies, both incorporated on Dec. 3, 2009. One is called Luke Contracting Ltd. of which he is the only director. The second — Exotic Auto Imports Ltd. — also lists  fellow West Point Hells Angel Larry Amero as a director.  

Hells Angel Larry Ronald Amero in file photo

Amero was charged in January with conspiracy to kill gangster rivals Sandip Duhre and Sukhveer Dhak, who died months apart in targeted 2012 shootings. He remains in pre-trial custody awaiting trial.

Cimoszko’s only B.C. conviction was in Surrey in 2002 for driving while prohibited. He got a week in jail.

Land title records show that he bought a 26th-floor apartment in downtown Vancouver in 2012 that is now assessed at $1.05 million. In addition to the leased Corvette, personal property records show Cimoszko also had leased or bought a 2016 Honda Pilot, a 2016 Harley and a 2017 Cadillac Escalade.

Meanwhile, another civil forfeiture case involving the Hells Angels is set to start in B.C. Supreme Court next Monday, more than 10 years after it was first filed.

The B.C. government wants the clubhouse of the East Vancouver, Nanaimo and Kelowna chapters forfeited, alleging they would be used for criminal activity in future if returned to the bikers. The Hells Angels are challenging the constitutionality of the province’s Civil Forfeiture Act.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

Kellen McElwee’s family is still waiting for answers more than a decade after they last saw him.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team believes he met with foul play in April 2008, but his body has never been found.

His parents Len and Paula McElwee appeared at an RCMP news conference in Surrey today to appeal for information that would lead to a break in the case.

They stressed that Kellen, who was 25 when he vanished, was a passionate young man who would do anything for a friend in need.

Here is a letter they released about their son:

“We remember Kellen’s childhood as being normal.  He was involved in hockey at a young age as well as baseball.  As a family, we moved from one event to another.  He was a good student all through school and excelled in mathematics.  He had the widest smile and the kindest heart.  He was very unassuming but he had his own opinions and stood up for his beliefs.  Kellen was a driven and passionate young man when he was faced with a challenge or a friend needed help.  He was just beginning a new chapter of his life teaching marketing skills and loved the interaction and the challenge his students presented.

Kellen did not have a criminal record.  We never thought he would disappear off the face of the world without a goodbye.  He did not act stressed or fearful for his life.  Kellen had many friends from different times in his life and never seemed to have any difficulties interacting with any of them. 

The last ten years have not been easy for our family.  Kellen would now have been 35 years old.  He might have married and he might have had children who we will never get to meet.  We would like to bring Kellen home.

At this time, we would like to ask for anyone who may have information about Kellen’s death to please contact IHIT.  Perhaps over the years you have heard rumours or stories about what happened to Kellen.  Perhaps you saw something on Facebook or another social media site about what happened to Kellen, but you thought the police must know about that so you never said anything.  We would be eternally grateful if you are able to provide the police with any information.  Please bear in mind no information is irrelevant and you may remain anonymous. We are making this appeal particularly to those who knew Kellen and may have valuable information that can help the police solve his murder and find his remains.  Kellen’s presence will always remain with family and friends.  We hope this public plea will help bring Kellen and our family the justice he deserves.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact IHIT at:  1-877-551-4448 or ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.

The federal government is not doing enough to keep organized crime out of the medical marijuana business, B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said Thursday.

Farnworth was reacting to two recent Postmedia News stories about full-patch members of the Hells Angels being involved in medical pot in B.C.

This week, Postmedia reported that West Point Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, who died recently of a suspected overdose, had a federal licence to grow medical cannabis despite allegations by the B.C. Civil Forfeiture Office that he was involved in organized crime.

And in February, Postmedia revealed that long-time Vancouver Hells Angel Hal Porteous was offering on Instagram to help people obtain medical marijuana growing licences. Porteous has since retired from the biker gang.

“We don’t want to see the involvement of organized crime in either medical cannabis or the recreational cannabis industry. This is clearly evidence that not-thorough-enough background screenings are being done by Health Canada on who is getting these licences,” Farnworth said.  “There is absolutely no place for organizations like the Hells Angels in either recreational cannabis or medicinal cannabis.”

Farnworth said the federal government has promised reforms to the medical cannabis licensing system within five years to help deal with organized crime infiltration and other issues that have been raised.

“I think that is far too long. I think now with the legalization of recreational cannabis, there needs to be significant reform done on the medical cannabis side,” he said.

He said organized crime’s involvement in the production and sale of cannabis “is an area of real concern for us at the provincial and local level.”

“It is frustrating that Health Canada does not seem to realize this, and I don’t know why,” Farnworth said. “There should be thorough background checks because they know that this whole system of medical cannabis is attracting organized crime like moths to a flame.”

Hal Porteous.

Cimoszko was fighting a lawsuit filed by the director of civil forfeiture last year after the biker was stopped by Vancouver police and found to have 240 grams of marijuana, a machete and bundles of cash totaling $12,270 in his leased Corvette.

He argued in his court documents that he had a medical licence to possess the pot and that police violated his Charter rights when officers searched him.

But the government agency alleged he was in possession of more pot than his licence allowed and that he was “participating in the activities of a criminal organization.”

“Mr. Cimoszko did not have sufficient legitimate income to have acquired the money,” the suit said.

It noted that he got his licence in April 2013 under the Medical Marijuana Access Regulations.

Related

• Hells Angel facing B.C. civil forfeiture suit dies of suspected overdose
• Hells Angel offers to help people get medical pot-growing licences

At the time, Cimoszko’s business partner in a car import company, fellow West Point Hells Angel Larry Amero, was facing cocaine importation charges in Quebec. The charges were stayed last year due to delays in the case. But Amero has since been charged with conspiracy to kill two gang rivals.

Health Canada media relations officer Rebecca Purdy said she couldn’t comment on how a Hells Angel would qualify for a medical pot growing licence.

“For privacy reasons, Health Canada cannot comment on whether an individual is authorized and registered to produce a limited amount of cannabis for their own medical purposes,” she said in an email.

Earlier this year, Postmedia reported that Porteous, a member of the Vancouver Hells Angels chapter until recently, offered to help people get medical licences.

“If anyone is in serious pain and doesn’t want to take prescription medication and would like a medical marijuana license to grow there (sic) own medication, please DM me. This is legal!!” 

Retired police biker expert Andy Richards provided Postmedia with a copy of Porteous’ social media post.

Richards, now CEO of Spire Secure Logistics, said the revelations about Cimoszko’s growing licence “certainly reflects poorly on Health Canada’s ability to regulate our national medical cannabis system.”

“When one full-patch HA member is able to obtain a personal production licence, and another has the ability to broker ‘pooled’ licences across Canada, one has to wonder how well regulators will be able to monitor and inspect aspects of the legal recreational cannabis system,” he said Thursday.

“The prevention of organized crime infiltration, black market diversion, and keeping cannabis out of the hands of youth have been touted as primary goals of legislation. To be honest, so far we’ve seen little beyond lip service.”

Kbolan@postmedia.com

Blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

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Three men charged with the 2011 murder of Red Scorpion gangster Jonathan Bacon are expected to plead guilty to lesser charges when the case resumed on May 1, Crown spokesman Dan McLaughlin confirmed Friday.

A new indictment was sworn this week against Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones. All three had been facing first-degree murder charges for the August 2011 shooting of a Porsche Cayenne outside Kelowna’s Delta Grand hotel.

Bacon was killed, Hells Angel Larry Amero and two women in the vehicle were wounded, while Independent Soldiers gangster James Riach was uninjured.

McLaughlin said the new indictment in the case was filed April 19.

McBride is now charged with the second-degree murder of Bacon, and the attempted murder of Amero, Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black.

Jones and Khun-Khun are now charged only with conspiracy to commit the murders of Amero, Riach and Bacon.

“The matter has now been adjourned to May 1, 2018. It is anticipated that guilty pleas will be entered at that time to all charges on the new indictment and the sentencing hearing will proceed on the basis of a joint submission,” McLaughlin said.

“As the matter remains before the court the B.C. Prosecution Service will have no further comment at this time.”

MORE TO COME…

United Nations gang associate Aram Ali will be released into the community while awaiting deportation to his native Iraq despite submissions by the Canada Border Services Agency that he is a danger to the public.

Immigration and Refugee Board member Laura Ko ruled Friday that placing the convicted gunman on strict conditions should protect Canadians while allowing Ali to spend time with his family until he gets the travel documents needed for his deportation.

Ko rejected arguments from CBSA representative Meelan Gene that Ali’s history of criminality and gang association would likely continue if he were to be released.

Gene noted that when Ali shot up the Range Rover of a gang rival outside Surrey’s T-Barz strip club in February 2009, he was on bail on a drug trafficking charge.

If released now, “it is all too likely that Mr. Ali will be tempted by the fast and easy money of criminality once again, which would result in further offences that would endanger members of the public,” Gene said.

She also pointed to comments from B.C. Supreme Court Justice Heather Holmes who called Ali “a mercenary for hire who was prepared to shoot a person for money and put other people at very serious risk.”

The 33-year-old was sentenced in December 2015 to eight and a half years for the shooting he carried out on behalf of UN gangster Barzan Tilli-Choli. The Range Rover driver was injured, but the intended target — Independent Soldier Tyler Willock — escaped injury.

Holmes said “it was by sheer luck that (the driver) or one of his passengers were not more seriously injured or killed.”

With credit for pre-trial custody, Ali got a net sentence of three and a half years and was transferred to immigration custody this month after serving two-thirds of the term.

The Immigration and Refugee Board ruled earlier that Ali, who was an infant when he fled Iraq with his family, is not eligible to remain in Canada due to his serious criminality.

Ko noted that Ali abided by bail conditions while living in Calgary from 2011 until he was tried, convicted and sentenced in Vancouver in 2015.

And she said Ali did well while imprisoned, completing high school and taking other pro-social programing.

“I think you would likely comply with conditions given your motivation and your past compliance with conditions,” she told him at the conclusion of a day-long hearing.

She ordered Ali to follow conditions imposed on him earlier by the Parole Board of Canada to steer clear of criminal associates, carry only a single cellphone and provide details of his finances to a probation officer.

She also imposed a 9 p.m. curfew and said he could be released after his mother Ramzieh Mouhammed put up a $5,000 bond.

“The bond being offered by your family offers an additional incentive,” Ko said. “This is giving you the opportunity to spend any time you do have with your family.”

Mouhammed testified at her son’s hearing, crying when she described how hard it will be when he is sent to Iraq.

She said through an interpreter that if her eldest son could be released, even for a short time, “it would be like the whole world is given to me.”

Ali’s lawyer Veen Aldosky argued that it would be unfair to hold Ali in custody while it is unclear how long it will take Iraq to issue the travel documents.

She said that she will be filing an appeal of the earlier Immigration and Refugee Board ruling against her client.

In addition to convictions for aggravated assault and discharging a firearm in the T-Barz shooting, Ali has an earlier conviction for drug trafficking. And he was also implicated by a witness at a gang murder trial last year as having accidentally shot at a UN gang associate in May 2008 while the gang was out hunting the Bacon brothers.

Tilli-Choli, who pleaded guilty to conspiring to kill the Bacons, was deported to Iraq in January 2017 after completing his sentence.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

I had heard recent rumblings that there might be a plea deal reached against three gangsters accused in the 2011 Jonathan Bacon murder.

But I was still a bit surprised when the news broke Friday morning that Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones are expected to plead guilty May 1 to lesser charges in connection with the Aug. 14, 2011 shooting outside Kelowna Delta Grand hotel.

McBride is expected to plead guilty to the second-degree murder of Bacon, while the other two will plead guilty to conspiracy to commit murder.

We will learn more details on May 1. I will be in Kelowna that day.

Here’s my story:

Three gangsters on trial for the 2011 murder of Red Scorpion leader Jonathan Bacon are expected to plead guilty to lesser charges when their trial resumes on May 1, Crown spokesman Dan McLaughlin confirmed Friday.

A new indictment was sworn this week against Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Allan Bretton was notified of the plea deal Friday morning.

All three men had been facing charges of first-degree murder and attempted murder for the brazen Aug. 14, 2011 shooting outside Kelowna’s Delta Grand Hotel.

Bacon was fatally wounded when the Porsche Cayenne he was in was sprayed with bullets in front of shocked onlookers.

Also wounded was the Cayenne’s driver — Hells Angel Larry Amero — and passengers Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black. Independent Soldier James Riach jumped out as the shooting started and escaped injury.

McLaughlin said the new indictment in the case was filed April 19.

McBride is now charged with the second-degree murder of Bacon, and the attempted murder of Amero, Riach, Hadden-Watts and Black.

Jones and Khun-Khun are now only charged with conspiring with McBride, the late Sukh Dhak and others to commit the murders of Amero, Riach and Bacon between June 1 and Aug. 14, 2011.

“The matter has now been adjourned to May 1, 2018. It is anticipated that guilty pleas will be entered at that time to all charges on the new indictment and the sentencing hearing will proceed on the basis of a joint submission,” McLaughlin said. “As the matter remains before the court, the B.C. Prosecution Service will have no further comment at this time.”

The trial of the three gangsters began in Kelowna on May 29, 2017 and continued on and off until October before being adjourned to sort out disclosure issues. 

Jonathan Bacon in June 2008 file photo

Crown prosecutor Dave Ruse promised dramatic evidence in his opening statement. He said that DNA of all three accused was found on hoodies and a ball cap discarded after the murder. 

And he said that former gangsters-turned Crown witnesses would testify that all three accused were part of the team hunting Amero, Bacon and Riach because the Sukh Dhak believed the trio was behind the murder of his brother Gurmit in Burnaby in October 2010.

Ruse said that Khun-Khun, McBride, Jones and a fourth man, Manny Hairan, arrived in Kelowna early on the morning of Aug. 14, 2011 to kill Amero and his friends after they had been spotted partying in the lakeside resort town.

“They went and attended various bars, various clubhouses, including the Throttle Lockers and the Hells Angels, in an effort to locate Mr. Amero’s associates,” Ruse said.

The accused walked along the waterfront behind the Delta Grand Hotel where Amero and his group were staying and “saw a large orange boat named ‘Steroids and Silicone’ tied up. … Mr. McBride recognized that as Larry’s boat, and instructed them to keep their eyes open,” Ruse said.

Later that day, the Dhak associates went back to the hotel and waited.

Amero, Bacon, Riach, Hadden-Watts and Black had checked out and gotten into the Porsche. Bacon was in the front beside Amero. The women were in the back beside Riach.

“A Ford Explorer pulled up to the passenger side of the Porsche. Gunmen opened fire from within and outside the Explorer,” Ruse said.

“The gunmen eventually got into their vehicle and sped off.”

Ruse said the three firearms used in the murder — a Glock and two Norincos — were found months later dumped at a construction site north of Kelowna.

The clothing was found dumped inside a recycling bin at another location. Not only was there DNA matches to the accused, but a drop of Amero’s blood was found on one of the hoodies.

Police recovered 45 shell casings and two live rounds from the crime scene, Ruse said.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

The new indictment contains the following charges:

Count 1/Chef 1:

That on or about the 14^th, day of August, 2011, at or near Kelowna, in the Province of British Columbia, Jason Thomas MCBRIDE did commit the second degree murder of Jonathan Bacon, contrary to Section 235(1) of the Criminal Code. 

Count 2/Chef 2:

That on or about the 14^th, day of August, 2011, at or near Kelowna, in the Province of British Columbia, while using a prohibited firearm, Jason Thomas MCBRIDE did attempt to commit the murder of Larry Amero, James Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black, by discharging that firearm at Larry Amero, James Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black, contrary to Section 239(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.

Count 3/Chef 3:

That between the 1^st day of June, 2011 and the 14^th day of August, 2011, both dates inclusive, at or near Vancouver, Coquitlam, Kelowna, and elsewhere in the Province of British Columbia, Michael Kerry Hunter JONES and Jujhar KHUN-KHUN did conspire together, and with Jason McBride, Suhkveer Dhak, and others to commit the murder of Larry Amero, James Riach and Jonanthan Bacon, contrary to Section 465(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.

A long-awaited civil forfeiture trial against the Hells Angels begins today.

The civil forfeiture case began in 2007 when the government seized the Hells Angels’ Nanaimo clubhouse, alleging that it had been used for criminal purposes.

The director of civil forfeiture later made the same allegations in lawsuits he filed to seize biker clubhouses for the East End Vancouver and Kelowna chapters. Later in 2012, the Hells Angels responded with a countersuit, seeking to get B.C.’s Civil Forfeiture Act declared unconstitutional.

The trial has been delayed several times, but is now set to begin on Monday, April 23, 2018.

Reporter Kim Bolan is reporting live from the courthouse today. Follow along for more updates.

NANAIMO, B.C.: 07/08/2010 – The Hell’s Angels clubhouse is pictured in this 2010 file photo.

I filed this story Friday about an Immigration and Refugee Board hearing that resulted in an order to release UN gang associate and convicted gunman Aram Ali pending his deportation to his native Iraq.

I learned Monday that he wasn’t released because the Canada Border Services Agency has gone to the Federal Court of Canada to request a review of the IRB ruling. The CBSA believes Ali is too dangerous to be allowed out into the community.

I will update you when I have more information.

Here’s my original story:

An undercover police officer who discussed an international cocaine deal with Kelowna Hells Angel David Giles testified Tuesday that he never tried to steer Giles to specific answers during their 2012 conversations.

The officer, whose identity is shielded by a publication ban, continued his evidence on the second day of the trial between the Hells Angels and the B.C. director of civil forfeiture.

The government agency wants the Nanaimo, Kelowna and East Vancouver clubhouses of the biker gang forfeited on the basis that they would be used to commit crimes in the future.

The Hells Angels are fighting back with a countersuit seeking a declaration that the B.C. Civil Forfeiture Act is unconstitutional.

The trial got off to a slow start after lawyers for the Hells Angels challenged the admissibility of the 2012 recorded conversations, arguing they are hearsay evidence.

The intercepted conversations were part of a case that led to convictions against Giles, Hells Angel Bryan Oldham and several associates in 2016.

Giles died last year just months into a lengthy jail sentence.

The officer, who posed as a South American drug lord during four meetings with Giles, described the biker showing his Hells Angels tattoos and reassuring the cop that his “brothers” in the gang had his back in the deal.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Barry Davies will hear submissions Wednesday on whether or not to admit the evidence.

Hells Angel lawyer Greg DelBigio questioned the officer about his role in the earlier investigation.

“One of the issues you need to pay attention to is whether or not the target you are dealing with is simply lying to you, right?” DelBigio asked.

The cop responded that he is deliberately not provided with other details of the investigation so he can’t assess the truth of the target’s answers. He simply passed his information about what was said to the officer in charge of the undercover operation, he explained.

“If, for example, you were steering too hard and Mr. Giles lied to you, that is something you can’t comment on one way of the other?” DelBigio asked.

The officer replied: “Again, I was not trying to steer him.”

He said he would try to push a certain “topic of conversation” but did not try to elicit specific answers.

The officer said that Giles also admitted to having previously imported cocaine from South America to Canada, including a 2001 shipment of 2.5 tonnes on a fishing boat called the Western Wind that was seized by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Brent Olthuis, a lawyer representing the B.C. government, also tried Tuesday to get the ruling that convicted Giles admitted as evidence in the case.

But the Hells Angels lawyers said it would be improper to do so.

In the earlier ruling, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Carol Ross cited Giles’ conversations with the purported drug lord, which took place in Panama.

Giles described himself as the “consigliere” of his co-accused, Kevin Van Kalkeren.

“Mr. Giles discussed his history in the Hells Angels and some aspects of the club in relation to the criminal activities of members. He said that any business on the side, like the stuff they were talking about, had to be brought to three people in his room,” Ross noted.

The civil trial continues.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan

The Canadian government has appealed an immigration order allowing convicted B.C. gunman Aram Ali out of jail pending the gang associate’s deportation to his native Iraq.

Last Friday, Immigration and Refugee Board member Laura Ko said she believed Ali should be allowed to stay with his family in Calgary until he is removed from the country for serious criminality.

She ordered the 33-year-old United Nations gang associate released on $5,000 bail and a number of conditions.

But a lawyer for the federal Public Safety Minister went to the Federal Court of Canada later the same day, asking for a stay of Ko’s order “on an urgent basis.”

Government lawyer Brenda Ward said Ko erred by not adequately considering an earlier IRB ruling from March which found that Ali “was a danger to the public.”

“The minister will be irreparably harmed if the respondent is released from detention,” Ward said in court documents obtained by Postmedia.

Federal Court Judge Patrick Gleeson granted an emergency stay of Ko’s order. But the Federal Court will hear full arguments from Ali’s lawyer and the government at a hearing Thursday morning.

Ali was convicted of shooting up a rival’s Range Rover outside Surrey’s T-Barz strip club in February 2009. The vehicle’s driver was struck, but the target of the shooting, Independent Soldier Tyler Willock, escaped injury.

Bullet holes in Range Rover where intended targets of gangland shooting were sitting. Members of Lower Mainland Police Service announce the arrest of UN Gang members, including leader, Barzan Tilli-Choli, 27. They face counts of attempting to kill Fraser Sutherland, 40, and Tyler Willock, 27, as they sat in a black Range Rover.

Ali testified that he did the shooting for his friend, high-ranking UN gangster Barzan Tilli-Choli. At the time, Ali was on bail on a drug trafficking charge.

Gangster Barzan Tilli-Choli.

Postmedia obtained a copy of the March IRB ruling declaring Ali too dangerous to remain in the country. It’s signed by a “senior decision maker” identified only as C5869.

“After fully considering all the facts of this case, including the humanitarian aspects, and an assessment of the possible risks that Mr. Ali might face if returned to Iraq and the need to protect Canadian society, I find that the latter outweighs the former,” C5869 said.

Ali was sentenced in December 2015 to eight and a half years, but netted three and a half years after credit for his pretrial custody. Earlier this month, he reached his statutory release and was turned over to the Canada Border Services Agency.

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The IRB decision maker noted that it was only luck that prevented more people from being injured or killed when Ali opened fire outside the busy strip club.

“The circumstances of Mr. Ali’s most recent offence are chilling,” C5869 said in their 21-page ruling.  

“Called upon by a known leader of the UN gang in Vancouver, Mr. Ali left his apartment and his girlfriend to travel with this gang member to a strip club with the sole intent of harming an individual. The court described him as a mercenary.”

C5869 said Ali put “at risk members of the public and innocent persons who were in the company of the target.”

“As a young adult, Mr. Ali chose to associate with a criminal gang that already had a reputation for violence. He chose to traffic in drugs in order to make fast and easy money.”

Ali, who is from a Kurdish family, left Iraq as an infant and lived in a Syrian refugee camp for years before getting refugee status in Canada in 2000.

His lawyer Veen Aldosky said earlier that she would appeal the March ruling declaring her client a danger. She argued that Ali has matured since his involvement in the gang shooting and disassociated himself with the gang culture while in prison.

And he took courses to upgrade his education and improve himself.

Ali wrote to the CBSA in 2016 and said: “I’m embarrassed and ashamed of my wrong doings.”

“I understand what I’ve done is outrageous and irresponsible,” he wrote. “I put other people’s lives in danger and I have to live with that.”

kbolan@postmedia.com

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B.C. Supreme Court Justice Barry Davies sided with lawyers for the Hells Angels Wednesday in ruling that comments back in 2012 that Angel David Giles made to undercover officers should not be admitted as evidence the civil forfeiture case against the biker gang.

Davies said that the judge that convicted Giles acknowledged he might have been lying in the recorded conversations when he talked of his gang brothers to undercover police.

Giles was convicted on a series of charges and sentenced in January 2017, only to die in custody a few months later. Despite his former leadership role in the Kelowna Chapter of the Hells Angels, he is not a party in the B.C. government suit against the bikers aiming to get forfeiture of three of their clubhouses.

Here’s my earlier story:

Homicide investigators want the public to help them determine what Surrey’s most recent murder victim was doing in the hours before he was killed.

Integrated Homicide Investigation Team Cpl. Frank Jang said Delta resident Amin Vinepal, 24, was found about 3:30 p.m. Thursday on the side of the road in the 17800-block of 12^th Avenue. 

Soon after Vinepal’s body was found, Surrey RCMP received a call about a burning vehicle in the 18700-block of 28^th Avenue.  

“Investigators believe this vehicle may be related to the homicide and anyone with information about this vehicle is asked to contact the police,” Jang said in a news release.

“IHIT is releasing Mr. Vinepal’s name in an effort to determine his activities and who he may have had contact with prior to his death.  Mr. Vinepal was known to police and associated to gang activity.  Investigators believe Mr. Vinepal’s murder was targeted and linked to other gang violence in the Lower Mainland.”

He urged anyone with information about Vinepal or the murder to contact IHIT at at 1-877-551-4448 or ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca. 

KELOWNA — A dramatic 2011 shooting in the heart of this Okanagan city is expected to come to a less dramatic conclusion today as three gangsters plead guilty to having a role in the murder of Red Scorpion boss Jonathan Bacon.

All three accused — Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones — are expected to admit their involvement in the brazen Aug. 14, 2011 gangland hit to B.C. Supreme Court Justice Allan Bretton.

An agreed statement of facts has been reached and will be read in court, Crown spokesman Dan McLaughlin said last month as a new indictment was sworn in the case. 

Jujhar Khun-Khun (left); who’s been charged with the death of Jonathan Bacon in a turf war over drugs. Sukh Dhak is on the right.

McBride, Khun-Khun and Jones were originally charged in 2013 with the first-degree murder of Bacon, as well as the attempted murder of others with him in a Porsche Cayenne when it was shot up in the entrance to the Delta Grand Hotel.

Now McBride is expected to plead guilty to second-degree murder and four counts of attempted murder, while Khun-Khun and Jones have agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit murder. 

Wounded in the vehicle were Hells Angel Larry Amero, who was driving, and passengers Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black. Independent Soldier James Riach jumped out as the shooting started and escaped injury. 

Hells Angel Larry Ronald Amero in file photo

The late Sukh Dhak, who was gunned down a year later, is named as a co-conspirator in the new indictment.

The trial of the three gangsters began in Kelowna on May 29, 2017, and continued on and off until October, before being adjourned to sort out disclosure issues.

Crown prosecutor Dave Ruse laid out the expected evidence in his opening statement almost a year ago. He said that DNA of all three accused was found on hoodies and a ball cap discarded after the murder.

And he said that former gangsters-turned Crown witnesses would testify that all three accused were part of the team hunting Amero, Bacon and Riach because Dhak believed the trio was behind the murder of his brother Gurmit in Burnaby in October 2010.

Ruse said that Khun-Khun, McBride, Jones and a fourth man, Manny Hairan, arrived in Kelowna early on the morning of Aug. 14 to kill Amero and his friends after they had been spotted partying in the lakeside resort town.

The group searched for its targets in bars and biker clubhouses, before walking along the scenic waterfront behind the Delta Grand where Amero and his party were staying.

They knew they had found their prey when McBride recognized Amero’s boat — Steroids and Silicone — tied up behind the hotel.

 The shooting, carried out by masked gunmen, was captured on grainy hotel security played during the trial.

Kelowna residents and visitors who were enjoying the sunny Sunday afternoon recounted on the stand how shocked and frightened they were when the gunfire began.

Paramedics tend to victim Larry Amero at the scene of Jonathan Bacon’s murder.

Bacon was the eldest of a trio of Abbotsford gangsters who got involved in the drug trade at a young age and later joined the notorious Red Scorpion gang. Younger brother Jarrod is serving a 14-year sentence for cocaine trafficking. Youngest brother Jamie remains in pre-trial custody on a charge of counselling to commit murder. Last December, murder and conspiracy charges Jamie had been facing in the  2007 Surrey Six slayings were stayed.

At the time of Bacon’s murder, he had formed a gang alliance called the Wolfpack with some Hells Angels and some Independent Soldiers.

Earlier this year, Riach was sentenced to life in jail in the Philippines for trafficking drugs there. And Amero was charged in Vancouver in January with conspiracy to kill Dhak, as well as gangster Sandip Duhre, who died months apart in targeted 2012 shootings.

Neither Riach nor Amero were called as witnesses in the Kelowna trial.

After the Bacon murder, anti-gang police issued repeated public warnings that anyone connected to the Dhak-Duhre group could be targeted in retaliation.

They were right.

A few months later, Duhre was shot to death in the lobby of the Sheraton Wall Centre in downtown Vancouver. The violent conflict continued and in November 2012, Dhak and his bodyguard Thomas Mantel were gunned down outside a Burnaby hotel.

Several associates on either side of the conflict were also murdered in cases that remain unsolved.

Both Khun-Khun and Hones have been identified other trials as a suspects in two separate Lower Mainland murders.

More to come.

kbolan@postmedia.com 

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan 

The new charges in the case are:

Count 1/Chef 1:

That on or about the 14(th), day of August, 2011, at or near Kelowna, in the Province of British Columbia, Jason Thomas MCBRIDE did commit the second degree murder of Jonathan Bacon, contrary to Section 235(1) of the Criminal Code.

Count 2/Chef 2:

That on or about the 14(th), day of August, 2011, at or near Kelowna, in the Province of British Columbia, while using a prohibited firearm, Jason Thomas MCBRIDE did attempt to commit the murder of Larry Amero, James Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black, by discharging that firearm at Larry Amero, James Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black, contrary to Section 239(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.

Count 3/Chef 3:

That between the 1(st) day of June, 2011 and the 14(th) day of August, 2011, both dates inclusive, at or near Vancouver, Coquitlam, Kelowna, and elsewhere in the Province of British Columbia, Michael Kerry Hunter JONES and Jujhar KHUN-KHUN did conspire together, and with Jason McBride, Suhkveer Dhak, and others to commit the murder of Larry Amero, James Riach and Jonanthan Bacon, contrary to Section 465(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.

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We will learn Wednesday morning whether B.C. Supreme Court Justice Allan Betton will accept a joint sentencing submission for three gangsters who’ve admitted a role in the 2011 Jonathan Bacon murder case.

Crown and defence lawyers for Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones were in negotiations for weeks on how to bring the long-running prosecution to a close. The accused agreed to plead guilty to lesser charges – McBride to second-degree murder and attempted murder, while Jones and Khun-Khun have admitted their conspired to kill Bacon, Hells Angel Larry Amero and Independent Soldier James Riach.

The joint sentence recommendation is that McBride serve 18 years (minus 5 years pre-trial credit) before being eligible for parole on his life sentence, while Jones and Khun-Khun would get 18 years for the conspiracy minus pre-trial credit at a rate of 1.5 days for every day served for a net sentence each of about 10 years.

Here’s my full story:

 

KELOWNA — Three men who brought gangland terror to downtown Kelowna pleaded guilty Tuesday for their roles in the brazen 2011 execution of Red Scorpion boss Jonathan Bacon.

Prosecutor David Ruse said the retaliatory attack targeting Bacon, Hells Angel Larry Amero and Independent Soldier James Riach was made worse by where and how it happened — in front of the Delta Grand Hotel around 2:30 p.m. on Aug. 14, 2011.

“It is difficult to imagine a more public place to attempt this murder than the entranceway of a large resort hotel in a tourist city in the middle of summer on a sunny Sunday day,” Ruse told B.C. Supreme Court Justice Allan Betton.

Ruse described how Jason McBride, Michael Jones and Jujhar Khun-Khun hunted their rivals for more than two months, pulling together crews of hitmen on a moment’s notice after getting encrypted messages about the possible whereabouts of their targets.

The driving force behind the murder plot was the late Sukh Dhak. He believed Bacon, Amero and Riach were responsible for the murder of his gangster brother Gurmit, gunned down in front of his family outside of Burnaby’s Metrotown Mall in October 2010.

“Sukh Dhak and other members of the Dhak group, came to believe that rival drug traffickers Larry Amero, James Riach and Jonathan Bacon, collectively known as the Wolf Pack, were responsible for the murder of Gurmit Dhak,” Ruse said. “As a result, members of the Dhak group sought to retaliate against the Wolf Pack and their associates.”

McBride was a close associate of Gurmit Dhak. Jones was McBride’s friend. Khun-Khun was a close ally of Sukh Dhak, Ruse said.

All three had originally been charged in 2013 with first-degree murder. After weeks of negotiations between Crown and their lawyers, a deal was struck for each to plead guilty to lesser charges.

 

Standing in the prisoner’s box Tuesday, McBride admitted he was guilty of second-degree murder and attempted murder for fatally shooting Bacon and wounding four others when he opened fire on their Porsche Cayenne.

Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder for driving McBride and two other killers to the Delta Grand Hotel that day. And Khun-Khun also admitted he conspired from June 1 to Aug. 14, 2011 to kill Bacon, Amero and Riach.

Ruse told Betton there was also a joint prosecutor-defence submission on sentencing. Under the agreement, which Betton must still approve, McBride would receive a life sentence with no parole eligibility for 18 years, minus credit for five years in pre-trial custody. Khun-Khun and Jones would also get 18 years minus credit for time served for a net sentence of about 10 years.

Betton adjourned the proceedings until Wednesday morning when he will hand down the sentences.

There was extra security at the Kelowna Law Courts for Tuesday’s proceedings. Anti-gang police with a sniffer dog checked bushes and garbage cans outside the building. There were extra sheriffs both outside and inside.

Outside court, Crown spokesman Dan McLaughlin said the “plea resolution arrived at today reflects a frank and a thorough analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the case.”

He said the Crown recognized there were credibility issues with some of the witnesses who were previous associates of the accused. And the Crown was also concerned “with the ongoing delay in this case,” McLaughlin said.

“The resolution today brings a certainty and finality to the proceedings,” he said.

Ruse read a lengthy agreed statement of facts laying out the events both before and after the shooting.

He said Khun-Khun went out hunting “on approximately 30 to 40 occasions to locations primarily in Vancouver and Coquitlam in an effort to locate the targets.”

He went past places he believed Amero, Bacon and Riach were staying. He checked out nightclubs, bars and restaurants. He collected vehicle descriptions and plate numbers, Ruse said.

“The stalking and intelligence gathering was undertaken knowing that the information obtained would likely be used to determine the optimal time and place for the ambush and killing of one or all of the targets,” Ruse said.

Both McBride and Jones travelled to the Okanagan weeks before the shooting, in an unsuccessful bid to kill Amero and Riach, “who they had reason to believe were visiting the City of Kelowna.”

But they got lucky on night of Aug. 13 when Sukh Dhak got an encrypted message that the three were in Kelowna staying at the Delta Grand Hotel.

About 11 p.m., McBride and Jones left Vancouver for the Okanagan. They got into town just before 4 a.m. and parked across from the hotel’s main entrance.

Khun-Khun also left the Lower Mainland for Kelowna, traveling with Manjinder Hairan — one of the shooters who was later killed before he was charged in the Bacon murder.

Sukh Dhak was in communication with several other associates in the wee hours of Aug. 14. Several of them ended up cooperating with the Crown. Their names are covered by a publication ban.

The Dhak hunters checked pubs, nightclubs and biker clubhouses before spotting Amero’s boat — named Steroids and Silicone — moored behind the Delta Grand. It was about 4 a.m. They knew they were closing in on their targets.

The hunters split into two groups and went to sleep for a few hours before meeting up the next morning and resuming their post near the hotel.

Amero, Bacon, Riach and two women with them — Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black — checked out of the hotel about 12:20 p.m. to go for a short boat ride. The valet parked the Porsche in front of the hotel and loaded up the group’s luggage.

“At approximately 2:37 p.m., the Amero party began boarding the Porsche Cayenne,” Ruse said.

Amero was driving, Bacon was in the front passenger’s seat, Riach was behind Amero, with Hadden-Watts in the rear middle and Black behind Bacon.

A minute later, a Ford Explorer driven by Jones entered the hotel driveway and parked near the Cayenne, Ruse said.

Someone in the rear started firing an assault rifle at the Amero vehicle. McBride and Hairan — both with their faces covered — jumped out of the Explorer and continued to shoot.

Ruse showed the surveillance video of the terrifying scene, with people nearby scrambling for cover. Bacon could be seen falling out of the vehicle, as Riach jumped out his side.

Amero’s right arm was paralyzed. Hadden-Watts was hit in the neck and paralyzed. Black was also struck. Riach escaped injury.

“Pay attention to the number of bystanders that are present. This is not an unusual circumstance for this hotel on a sunny Sunday day. There are people arriving, leaving. There are employees, valet staff, taxis arriving with individuals. There are people walking their dogs. There are people walking by,” Ruse said.

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KELOWNA — Three gangsters who admitted their roles in the 2011 murder plot that left Jonathan Bacon dead and three others wounded were handed lengthy prison terms in B.C. Supreme Court here Wednesday.

Justice Allan Betton accepted a joint sentencing submission from Crown and defence lawyers for Jason McBride, Jujhar Khun-Khun and Michael Jones.

McBride pleaded guilty Tuesday to second-degree murder and attempted murder, admitting he blasted an AK-47-like automatic rifle at Bacon and others in a Porsche Cayenne outside the Delta Grand hotel on a sunny afternoon in August 2011. Betton sentenced McBride to life in prison with no eligibility for parole for 18 years.

Jones and Khun-Khun each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder – Jones for driving the killers to the execution and Khun-Khun for being part of the hunt.

Each was sentenced to 18 years, with a net term of 10 years after credit for pretrial custody.

Betton said both Jones and Khun-Khun should serve at least half their remaining sentence because of “the peculiar and egregious nature of these matters [and] the prolonged element of the conspiracy.”

“This was a planned and calculated attack with magnificent risk to innocent persons,” Betton said.

Normally inmates can apply for parole at the one-third mark of their sentence.

Jujhar Khun-Khun (left), charged with the death of Jonathan Bacon in a turf war over drugs. Sukh Dhak is on the right.

Betton said the brazen gangland shooting in a crowded downtown area “shocked the community.”

“That area, as could be expected, was busy with people at and around the hotel going about their business,” he told a packed, high-security courtroom.

Wounded in the attack was Hells Angel Larry Amero and back-seat passengers Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsay Black. Independent Soldier James Riach jumped out of the Porsche as the shooting began and escaped injury.

Betton noted the gangster victims, who had formed the Wolf Pack coalition, “had become targets of retaliation for the shooting death of Gurmit Dhak” in October 2010.

Dhak’s brother Sukh plotted revenge, calling on McBride, Jones, Khun-Khun and other allies and associates to help in the hunt.

Hells Angel Larry Ronald Amero in file photo

Sukh Dhak was later murdered in November 2012. Amero is now charged with conspiracy to kill the younger Dhak brother.

When Sukh Dhak and his hitmen learned on Aug. 13, 2011 that his Wolf Pack rivals were in Kelowna, “the conspiracy that had been on-going was then fine-tuned and led to the critical events that occurred just after 2:30 p.m. on Aug. 14,” Betton said.

“That no one else was injured or killed — but for it being true — would seem unbelievable.”

Forty-five expended cartridges were recovered outside the Delta Grand. There were 34 bullet holes in the Porsche. One 9mm bullet hit the window of the Kelowna Art Gallery across the street and another went through a wall and into a hair salon.

Betton said the joint sentencing submissions adequately addressed the nature of the crime and some of the challenges that the Crown had with the case — a series of unsavoury co-operating witnesses and former associates of the accused and months of delays in the proceedings related to disclosure issues.

“I do accept the joint submissions. In my view, reasonable and informed persons aware of all the relevant circumstances could not see the joint submission as reflecting a break down in the proper functioning in the justice system,” Betton said.

“It has been a highly complex and difficult case with many challenges and there are significant reasons for uncertainly as to what the ultimate outcome would have been had it not been for these … pleas that have been entered.”

All three men, each dressed in a dark suit, stood as Betton delivered their fate. They then shook hands with their lawyers before being led away by sheriffs.

Outside the courthouse, Sgt. Brenda Winpenny, of the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, said hundreds of officers from the anti-gang agency have been involved in the investigation, dubbed E-Nitrogen.  

Supt. Brent Mundle, officer in charge of the Kelowna RCMP, addresses reporters outside the Kelowna Courthouse on May 2, 2018 about sentencing in the Jon Bacon murder case. Sgt. Brenda Winpenny is on the right.

The policing costs top $9 million dollars, she told reporters.

“The outcome of today is a successful prosecution,” Winpenny said. “These investigations are very complex and very involved.”

Supt. Brent Mundle, who heads the Kelowna RCMP, said the “brazen daytime shooting was directly related to organized crime.”

“While thankfully rare, I recognize that these violent and public crimes can have a dramatic impact on the people who live, work in and visit our communities,” Mundle said.

He said he hoped the sentencing “will provide closure to those who may still be affected by these events.

CFSEU Chief Officer Kevin Hackett said the convictions and long sentences should “serve as a reminder to those involved in perpetrating gang violence that we will be relentless and resolute as we help bring those individuals who threaten our communities with gun violence to account.”

kbolan@postmedia.com

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Two men with gang links who were beaten while awaiting trials in Metro Vancouver jails have been awarded a total of almost $3.5 million by the B.C. government to settle their lawsuits.

Independent Soldier associate Jesse Margison was given a $3-million settlement after suffering severe brain damage when another inmate at the North Fraser Pretrial Centre stomped on his head in August 2012.

At the time, he was facing kidnapping charges with several others, but was found unfit to stand trial after the beating, which left him in a coma for several weeks.

Jesse Margison

Margison’s lawyers filed a civil suit seeking damages to cover the cost of his ongoing care. They argued that jail staff should have been aware of the threats Margison was facing from rival gangsters and taken steps to protect him. 

And Allen Ogonoski, a former gang member of Surrey Thugs Inc., was awarded $496,600 for the brain injury he suffered after being attacked in Surrey Pretrial by a rival gangster on Aug. 15, 2011.

His suit against the B.C. government alleged that he “was intentionally assaulted and battered” by another prisoner named Chris Fulmer with connections to the Red Scorpion gang, and that jail officials were negligent by not recognizing that he was incompatible with the Scorpion.

Both lawsuits were settled in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017. Some details of the agreements were contained in an annual government report titled “Payments under the Crown Proceeding Act,” which was tabled last week.

In Margison’s case, the report said: “The plaintiff claims the province is liable for damages the plaintiff suffered when assaulted by Leonard Cardinal on or about Aug. 12, 2012.

“He claims that in not preventing the assault, the province was negligent and/or breached his rights under section 7 and section 12 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

And in both of the cases, the report said that a government lawyer advised that “the plaintiff might have a successful claim” and “that it is in the public interest to settle the claim.”

Lawyers for the two injured men could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Because of his brain injury, Margison was unable to assist his lawyers in piecing together the events that led up to the assault. They had filed several motions in B.C. Supreme Court to try to get North Fraser records related to gang inmates.

Cardinal pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in the attack, telling a Surrey provincial court judge that he had heard Margison was going to beat him so launched a pre-emptive strike. The judge didn’t buy his explanation, and noted the horrendous injuries that Margison suffered.

Margison’s lawyers later learned their client had been visited at North Fraser in May 2012 by police to warn him that the Hells Angels wanted him dead.

And they determined that Cardinal had been in contact with a jailed Hells Angel just a day before the attack.

Margison’s close associate and former co-accused Troy McKinnon, who was convicted in the kidnapping case, was shot to death in a gangland hit in Nanaimo in January.

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan