Biker 'rat' opposed giving tour to media

Website letter says turncoat made 'articulate, passionate' argument against Hells Angels open house

Peter Edwards
Betsy Powell
Staff Reporters

The Hells Angel-turned police informant voted down a plan to invite members of the media for a tour of the Eastern Ave. clubhouse, now the property of the federal government after last week's massive police sweep, the downtown chapter's website claims.
"In February, the downtown Angels were entertaining a motion to invite the media into our clubhouse, show what it contained, lay our books bare and compare security with adjacent commercial buildings that made our low-tech measure laughable," reads the posting.
"The motion was defeated when one member made an impassioned plea to keep the sanctity of the club private," it continues. "He was articulate, he was passionate, he was working for the police."
Elsewhere on the site, in the "guestbook" section, it appears one of the bikers has posted a personal letter to "Shaky," painting him as the informant. It suggests the person posting the message grew suspicious over time about an ongoing effort to entrap him and other club members.
"... I sure wish I warned others. We are a big family that's very careful not to hurt each other with unsure accusations, and we love and trust each other and you traded and you profited and you schemed on that," it reads.
"When you do see one of them `snitchin rats' in the mirror, spit on him for me will ya. You know who." It concludes: "Entrapment is legal in Canada – Creating crime is the easiest way to solve it."
The Internet is also where an anonymous blogger leaked a judge's order allowing federal authorities to seize the bunker-like clubhouse. The March 25 posting of the confidential court document could have tipped off the biker gang.
That clubhouse should be turned into a homeless shelter, suggests the Internet blogger.
"It's central, secure and could probably hold 400 beds. Let's do it," said the blogger.
The suggestion was also posted March 25, 11 days before last Wednesday's dawn raid.
The blogger, identifying himself only as drmm, would not respond to questions posed by the Star about how he obtained the judge's order, why he posted it on the Internet or how he feels about the Angels.
The clubhouse raid was part of a massive operation called Project Develop, in which police made 31 arrests across southern Ontario, New Brunswick and Vancouver.
For a full day after the raids by tactical officers, police said that to ensure the safety of the 400 officers involved, they could not comment on the operation.
Organized crime expert Antonio Nicaso, who has lectured internationally on organized crime, said the Hells Angels are particularly adept with computers, and the Internet leak could have placed the lives of police officers and a police informant in the gang at risk.
"They're probably the only organized crime group that advertises itself on the Internet," Nicaso said, referring to how the Angels post online critiques of policing and news coverage, and sell souvenirs, on the Internet.
The judge drafted the order on March 14 after a court hearing in London, Ont., that was so secret that the Hells Angels did not have a lawyer present.
Bail hearings continue tomorrow for bikers arrested last week on charges ranging from gangsterism to trafficking controlled substances like cocaine and the date rape drug GHB.
The Eastern Ave. clubhouse was home to the largest Hells Angels chapter in Canada, with three dozen members.
The judge's ruling allowed the transfer of the clubhouse and two houses in Scarborough and Barrie to the federal government.
It stated that the bikers would learn that they lost their properties only when they were served with search warrants: "A copy of this order shall be served on the following parties but shall only be served upon the execution of search warrants at the properties whenever that may be," the order read.
The judge studied the affidavits of two police officers before ruling the Eastern Ave. clubhouse and two houses were proceeds of crime under anti-racketeering legislation.

Toronto Star April 09, 2007