It’s being called the largest one-day police operation of its kind in Canadian history. On March 28, 2001,  nearly 2,000 officers involved in the joint forces of Operation SPRINGTIME 2001(Opération PRINTEMPS 2001) carried out simultaneous raids in 77 municipalities in Québec against the HELLS ANGELS.

This complex operation involved the coordination of police forces at regional, national and international levels.  The Québec Police Force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Montreal Urban Community Police Department and 23 municipal police forces took part in the raids.  With the help of the Ontario Provincial Special Squad, RCMP “E” Division, Vancouver Police Department, the Organized Crime Agency of British Columbia and the Winnipeg Police Service, arrests also took place in Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia.  In cooperation  with Jamaican police, Mexican police and Interpol Mexico, two suspects were arrested and deported from Jamaica and Mexico.²

Québec has used permanent joint task forces to disrupt and dismantle outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMGs) in the province since the outbreak of the biker war between the HELLS ANGELS and ROCK MACHINE.  Based in Montreal, CARCAJOU (WOLVERINE), was created in 1995 to investigate the biker war which started in 1994.  CARCAJOU II was expanded to target the HELLS ANGELS, ROCK MACHINE and related puppet clubs in Montreal and Québec City.³  In 1998, the task force again expanded.  CARCAJOU II was replaced with six regional joint forces squads or ERMs (escouades régionales mixtes).  ERMs, composed of the RCMP, the Québec Police Force and municipal police forces, are located in Montreal, Québec City, Mauricie, Estrie, Saguenay and the Outaouais, all in Québec.

In 1999, these task forces came together in a coordinated investigation.  Operation SPRINGTIME 2001 was the compilation of four joint forces operations against the HELLS ANGELS and their puppet clubs, the ROCKERS and EVIL ONES Outaouais chapter, in Québec.  ERMs in Montreal, Québec City, Estrie and Mauricie targeted proceeds of crime, drug trafficking and criminal organization offenses.  Project BOBCAT, involving ERM Outaouais, targeted the EVIL ONES Outaouais drug trafficking.  The goal of the operation was to destabilize the HELLS ANGELS organization in the province by targeting OMG members and leaders.⁴

The HELLS ANGELS and the NOMADS⁵ controlled the large-scale distribution of drugs, particularly cocaine and hashish, throughout Québec.  In the gang’s highly structured hierarchical system, the lower-level puppet clubs and their associated street gangs performed the bulk of the criminal activities, particularly the more dangerous, violent or overt activities.  In Québec, the gangs were responsible for the estimated billion-dollar-a-year distribution of hundreds of kilograms of cocaine and hashish a month.  Almost all HELLS ANGELS chapters in Québec and their puppet clubs were required to go through the NOMADS to buy cocaine.⁶

Although the NOMADS primarily controlled cocaine sales, the gang also provided a source of hashish.  Because profits on hashish were much smaller, OMGs could choose their own sources.  Operation CHEVALIN was launched in autumn 1999 when Vermont border guards found US$136,832 taped to the bodies of a Québec couple.  This seizure led to an investigation of hashish sources and drug routes. ⁷

 The hashish came from Pakistan, was shipped through India, and then was sent on to Canada, either through European countries such as the Netherlands, Switzerland or Belgium, or through South Africa or Jamaica.  The drug then entered Canada through the Port of Montreal, Montreal’s Dorval Airport and Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, usually hidden in with other goods.  One of the three drug rings the hashish was supplied to was reportedly operated by the NOMADS.  The proceeds from the drugs were converted to US dollars before being transferred to Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates and India.⁸

Evidence from taped conversations between NOMADS members revealed that they were setting drug prices for the province in association with members of Traditional (Italian-based) organized crime.  In July 2000, an influential NOMADS member called a meeting with a group of ROCKERS during dinner at a Montreal South Shore restaurant.  "The price of a kilo is now $50,000," he said, "I made a deal with the Italians."⁹

At that meeting, a ROCKERS member and police informant was wearing a concealed wire.  He was a driver and bodyguard for two NOMADS members.  The informant was originally helping investigators solve 13 murders committed by the HELLS ANGELS as a result of their drug turf war with the ROCK MACHINE. ¹⁰

In July 2000, police obtained copies of the NOMADS’ bookkeeping papers which listed accounts to people identified only by a nickname.  The documents dealt with drug deals in code – “BL” (blanc, for cocaine) and “BR” (brun, for hashish).  The spreadsheets led police to open a probe into drug finances.¹¹

Apartment Stashes

In September 2000, police surveillance led  to the complex and well organized financial side of the NOMADS drug operation.  One apartment building in the north-end of Montreal was observed to be a delivery area for drug money.  Further video and audio surveillance revealed regular weekly drop-offs of bags full of cash.¹²

One apartment in the building was an initial drop-off point, the other was a secure location with a safe.  Spreadsheets seized from the apartment detailed individual and group accounts.¹³  There was an apartment with a safe and three money counting machines and gang accountants.  Counting machines were used daily to process the cash and credit the appropriate accounts.  Investigators seized $5.6 million from that apartment.¹⁴

Arrest Warrants for all NOMADS in Québec

At the time the search warrants were drawn up, five NOMADS members, two NOMADS prospects and one ROCKER member were already in jail.  They were arrested while in possession of eight restricted firearms and while studying photos of rival BANDIDOS.  They were sentenced to one year in prison under C-95 anti-gang legislation after a plea bargain. ¹⁵  As a result of Operation SPRINGTIME 2001, all NOMADS in Québec were charged with 13 counts each of first-degree murder and three counts each of attempted murder. ¹⁶  One NOMAD faces 15 counts of first-degree murder and four counts of attempted murder, with three of those counts relating to charges outside Operation SPRINGTIME 2001. ¹⁷

The Trial Process

A number of the arrested OMG members are being held in the B wing of the Montreal Bordeaux jail, the highest-security provincial prison in Québec.  A new courthouse with two courtrooms is being built next to the jail and is expected to be ready in September 2001.  Other than the prisoners, no one except the judge, lawyers, witnesses, police and jurors will be allowed in the courtroom.  The public will watch proceedings on closed-circuit television.  A number of OMG members were arraigned by video-conferencing.¹⁸

The trials will be split into French and English to accommodate language preferences, with the French trial beginning as early as fall 2001.  One NOMADS member has been released on bail after arguing that prison conditions were hampering his ability to defend himself and that there was no date yet set for the English trial.  An enormous amount of evidence must be translated before the English trial can begin. ¹⁹

Prison officials have set up seven “offices” in the Bordeaux jail equipped with computers, video cassette and tape recorders to handle the evidence which has been currently compiled on 69 CD-ROMs, 120 video cassettes, 70 audio tapes and stacks of paper documents.²⁰

Operation BOBCAT

Operation BOBCAT, the western Québec component of Operation SPRINGTIME 2001, targeted the EVIL ONES Outaouais.  The two-year joint task force brought together seven police forces including the Québec Police Force, the RCMP, Municipalité régional de comté des Collines de l’Outaouais (MRC) and the police forces of Hull, Gatineau, Aylmer and Ottawa-Carleton.  Fifteen Ottawa-Carleton police officers assisted with the raids.  One full-time investigator had worked on the joint task force for two years.  About 400 police conducted 79 searches in locations in 20 municipalities in west Québec, including Gatineau and Hull. ²¹  The operation involved 1,000 hours of recorded conversations.²²

Forty-four individuals, all connected to the EVIL ONES, were arrested.  The HELLS ANGELS South chapter direct the activities of the EVIL ONES Outaouais.  Twelve members of the EVIL ONES Outaouais face charges of drug trafficking, prostitution, first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.  Proceeds of crime charges are expected. ²³

The focus of the take-down was the EVIL ONES’ clubhouse in Val-des-Monts, Outaouais.  Seizures included half a dozen EVIL ONES’ colours²⁴, 30 guns, a crossbow, computers used for accounting, sodium lights used for indoor marijuana cultivation and bags of cocaine.  Documentation on building bombs was also seized.²⁵

In Operation BOBCAT II,  a continuation of BOBCAT, police targeted associates of the JOKERS St-Jean, Québec chapter, a puppet club to the HELLS ANGELS Trois Rivières chapter.  Ten individuals were arrested on drug trafficking charges relating to bars in Aylmer, Hull and Gatineau.  They were released on bail with various conditions. Police from the Hull, Gatineau, Aylmer, MRC des Collines, Québec Police Force, the RCMP and Ottawa-Carleton Police Force contributed to the task force. ²⁶

After Operation SPRINGTIME 2001 - Continuing the Momentum

Operation SPRINGTIME 2001 significantly destabilized the HELLS ANGELS in Montreal.  Law enforcement is capitalizing on the positive momentum of Operation SPRINGTIME 2001.  The organized crime division of the Montreal Urban Community Police Department (MUCPD) recently formed a task force, CAMPAIGN SUMMER 2001,  to gather information on individuals and groups who intend to take over Montreal’s drug trade from the HELLS ANGELS.  Investigators will visit all of the more than 1,600 licensed bars in MUCPD territory.  Another objective of the operation is to convince bar-owners that police need public information and cooperation to investigate drug-related activity in bars controlled by OMGs.²⁷

Operation SHADOW

The largest operation against the HELLS ANGELS in Alberta this year was Operation SHADOW which targeted several members and numerous associates of the Calgary chapter. The takedown occurred on March 30, 2001, after an intensive 11-month investigation involving the Calgary Police Service, RCMP “K”-Division and Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta. The Organized Crime Agency of British Columbia, the Winnipeg Police Service, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ontario Provincial Special Squad were also involved. 

Twenty-seven search warrants were executed throughout Calgary and the surrounding area.  Among the 51 individuals facing charges are six members, two ex-prospects, one hangaround, one ex-hangaround, one friend, and 39 associates of the HELLS ANGELS Calgary chapter.²⁸ There were 275 charges laid including 213 drug-related charges and 55 weapons charges.²⁹  The individuals charged in connection with Operation SHADOW are currently before the courts.
 

Approximately $250,000 dollars worth of property, cash and vehicles has been seized  as alleged proceeds of crime.

        ¹ King, Mike, “Stepping into the Hells Void: Gangs Watched for Drug-trade Takeover,” The Montreal Gazette, 30 March 2001. 

       ² Kalogerakis, George; Basem Boshra and Nicholas Van Praet, “The 'Mom' of All Raids 138 Snared; Boucher Charged in 13 Murders,” The Montreal Gazette, 29 March 2001; Singer, Zev, “Massive Raids Aim To Cripple Hells Angels: 138 Arrests,” The Ottawa Citizen, 29 March 2001; Legall, Paul; Carmelina Prete, “Biker Boss Wants to Come Home,” The Hamilton Spectator, 3 April 2001; “Hells Biker Faces Three Charges after Police Roundup in Mexico,” The Montreal Gazette, 5 April 2001. 

       ³ A puppet club is a subordinate gang that receives its orders and acts as a labour pool for the stronger gang. 

       ⁴ Singer, Zev, “Massive Raids Aim To Cripple Hells Angels: 138 Arrests,” The Ottawa Citizen, 29 March 2001. 

       ⁵ The NOMADS are a specific kind of HELLS ANGELS chapter which are not based in a certain geographical area. 

       ⁶ King, Mike, “Stepping into the Hells Void: Gangs Watched for Drug-trade Takeover,” The Montreal Gazette, 30 March 2001; Kalogerakis, George,”First Angel Gets Bail till Drug Trial,” The Montreal Gazette, 13 April 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ⁷ Ha, Tu Thanh, “Drug Ring Busted, RCMP Says,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 17 May 2001. Seventeen individuals were arrested in Montreal, Toronto, Québec City and Sherbrooke.  Police from England, France, India, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa and Portugal were involved in five other arrests. 

        ⁸ Ha, Tu Thanh, “Drug Ring Busted, RCMP Says,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 17 May 2001.  In Operation CHEVALIN there were seizures of 4,168 kg hashish, 175 kg cocaine, $500,000 in cash, $375,000 in valuables and prohibited weapons. 

        ⁹ Kalogerakis, George,”Hells, Mafia Fixed Price of Coke, Court Told,” The Montreal Gazette, 11 April 2001. Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. The judge imposed a publication ban on details in the afternoon of the first day of the bail hearing. 

       ¹⁰ Ha, Tu Thanh, “Bisexual Biker Hit Men Helped Bust the Hells Angels,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 26 May 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ¹¹ Brooks, Patricia; Randy Jones, “Fugitive Hells Angels Associate Nabbed in Grenada.” The Chronicle-Herald (Halifax), 28 November 2000; Ha, Tu Thanh, “Bisexual Biker Hit Men Helped Bust the Hells Angels,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 26 May 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ¹² Ha, Tu Thanh, “Bisexual Biker Hit Men Helped Bust the Hells Angels,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 26 May 2001; Kalogerakis, George, “Inside the Hells Cash Machine: $1 Billion a Year from Drug Sales Processed in Secret Apartment, Court Told,” The Montreal Gazette, 10 April 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ¹³ Ha, Tu Thanh, “Bisexual Biker Hit Men Helped Bust the Hells Angels,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 26 May 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ¹⁴ Ha, Tu Thanh, “Bisexual Biker Hit Men Helped Bust the Hells Angels,” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), 26 May 2001.  Kalogerakis, George, “Hells, Mafia Fixed Price of Coke, Court Told,” The Montreal Gazette, 11 April 2001.  Information obtained from intercepted communication introduced at bail hearing of two suspected HELLS ANGELS’ money couriers. 

        ¹⁵ Cherry, Paul, “Four Top Hells Nabbed While Studying Photos of Enemies,” The Montreal Gazette, 17 February 2001; “Hells Angels Jailed Under Gang Laws,” The Chronicle-Herald (Halifax), 22 February 2001. 

        ¹⁶ Brooks, Patricia, “Ex-N.S. Man Charged in 13 Biker Slayings,” The Chronicle-Herald (Halifax), 29 March 2001. 

        ¹⁷ Kalogerakis, George;Basem Boshra, and Nicholas Van Praet, “The 'Mom' of All Raids 138 Snared; Boucher Charged in 13 Murders,” The Montreal Gazette, 29 March 2001. 

        ¹⁸ “Québec to Expand Prison for Biker Trials,” The Ottawa Citizen, 31 March 2001; Van Praet, Nicholas, “Hells will be tried at Bordeaux,” The Montreal Gazette, 31 March  2001, Van Praet, Nicholas, “Guards at Bordeaux Fear Riot in Biker Wing,” The Montreal Gazette, 29 March 2001. 

        ¹⁹ Macafee, Michelle, “Hells Angels’ Gang Member Wins Release on Bail,” The Canadian Press, 18 June 2001. There is a publication ban on this bail hearing. “Québec Biker Denied Bail Judge Rules Right to Fair Trial Not Violated,” The Canadian Press, 21 June 2001. 

        ²⁰ Macafee, Michelle, “Hells Angels’ Gang Member Wins Release on Bail,” The Canadian Press, 18 June 2001.  Defense lawyers argued conditions at the jail did not give each prisoner enough daily access to computers and private cubicles to talk with their lawyers. The Québec government responded that the prisoners would get better access to the evidence against them. 

        ²¹ Casey, Donna, “Hells in Handcuffs Massive Sweep Spells Beginning of End for Biker Scourge, Cops Vow,” The Ottawa Sun, 29 March 2001. 

        ²² Bertrand, Jean-Francois, “Police Vow to Keep Heat on Bikers: 30 Arraigned in Hull Court,” The Ottawa Citizen, 30 March 2001. 

        ²³ Casey, Donna, “Hells in Handcuffs Massive Sweep Spells Beginning of End for Biker Scourge, Cops Vow,” The Ottawa Sun, 29 March 2001. 

        ²⁴ Colours are the vests or jackets upon which are sewn the gang emblem in the centre, topped by a rocker (patch) with the name of the gang and with a bottom rocker naming the country, state or province in which the chapter is located. 

        ²⁵ Bertrand, Jean-Francois, “Police Vow to Keep Heat on Bikers: 30 Arraigned in Hull Court,” The Ottawa Citizen, 30 March 2001. 

        ²⁶ Bertrand, Jean-Francois “Police Arrest 10 with Tier to Hells Angels,” The Ottawa Citizen, 6 June 2001. 

        ²⁷ Cherry, Paul, “Cops Track Drug Trade: MUC Police to Comb Bars as Bikers Vie for Territory,” The Montreal Gazette, 28 April 2001. 

        ²⁸ A “hangaround” has criminal experience and is subservient to all members and prospects.  A “friend” is subservient to all members, prospects and hangaround while an “associate” supports or profits from OMGs’ illicit and/or legitimate businesses. 

        ²⁹ Calgary Police Service News Release, Calgary Police Service, 30 March 2001. 

        ³⁰ Calgary Police Service News Release, Calgary Police Service, 30 March 2001.