TWO ANGELS SENTENCED TO FOUR YEARS

Bikers Pleaded Guilty To 11 Counts Of Cocaine Trafficking

The highest ranking member of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang yet
charged in B.C. and another senior Hells Angels member were sentenced
Monday to four years in prison for drug trafficking.

Norman Edward Krogstad, 58, who was president of the Vancouver chapter
of the Hells Angels at the time of his arrest in

January, and senior Hells Angels member Cedric Baxter Smith, 56, both
had pleaded guilty earlier to 11 counts of cocaine
trafficking.

The Crown and defence lawyers made a joint submission to the judge
indicating a four-year sentence was appropriate.

In imposing the sentence, Associate Chief Justice Patrick Dohm of the
B.C. Supreme Court recommended the bikers serve their time in the
minimum-security Ferndale Institution in Mission, which is known to
justice critics as Club Fed because it has cottages in a country
setting and waist-high fences.

The two were sentenced for their role in trafficking almost 10
kilograms of cocaine bought by a former biker who worked as an
undercover police agent during an 18-month police investigation
code-named Project Essen.

The operation cost about $2 million, including the roughly $400,000
spent buying cocaine, Vancouver RCMP Cpl. Glenn Atkins said outside
court.

Asked if he was disappointed by the four-year sentence, he said:
"That's probably about as good as we can expect."

He estimated the guilty pleas saved more than $1 million in court time
and avoided a lot of publicity for the Hells Angels.

"I'm sure a lot more of the intricacies about the Hells Angels would
have come out [at trial]," said Atkins, a member of the RCMP's outlaw
motorcycle gang unit, which is part of the Greater Vancouver drug section.

Police allege the Hells Angels is a criminal organization, which the
biker club repeatedly denies.

Smith also received a $100,000 fine for his role in the trafficking
operation, during which the police agent -- a former member of the
Renegades motorcycle gang in Prince George, an alleged puppet club of
the Hells Angels -- bought nine kilograms and 24 ounces of cocaine
between June 2003 and September 2004.

When Smith was arrested last January, police raided his home and
seized almost $73,000 in cash. The judge ordered Smith to pay an
additional $27,500 to satisfy payment of the fine.

Smith's lawyer, David Martin, told the court his client was single and
had spent his entire life as a body repair man, fixing cars.

Krogstad's lawyer, Ken Westlake, told the court his client had a long
work history as a welder and pleaded guilty to ease the stress on
family, particularly his 86-year-old mother, whom the son had been
looking after. The mother wrote a letter to the court describing her
son as "very giving."

In outlining the facts of the case for the judge, federal prosecutor
Martha Devlin noted that a former member of the Renegades biker club
in Prince George infiltrated the Hells Angels and began buying drugs
on July 3, 2003, when 12 ounces were bought for $14,000.

The prosecutor said the former biker -- who had first approached
police and now is living in the witness protection program -- was soon
purchasing a kilogram of cocaine at a time for $39,600.

The initial buys were made after the police agent met Smith at his
Langley home and at a nearby Wendy's restaurant -- the police agent
left the code 666 on Smith's pager as a signal to meet at the restaurant.

The prosecutor said the police agent also bought a kilogram of cocaine
from Smith in Cache Creek and another kilo at the Canyon Alpine Motel
in Boston Bar.

At one point, when the police agent complained his kilogram was an
ounce "short," Smith told him to take the matter up with Krogstad.
Also, when the police agent asked Smith if he could get a better price
for a kilogram of cocaine, Smith arranged a meeting with Krogstad,
where a new price of $34,000 was agreed upon.

FERNDALE FACTS:

A B.C. judge has recommended two convicted Hells Angels members serve
their time for drug trafficking in the minimum-security Ferndale
Institution north of Mission.

- - Justice critics call it Club Fed because it has cottages in a
country setting and waist-high fences.

- - In 2003, Ferndale's controversial golf course finally closed. The
former course is maintained as green space by the inmates, as are the
rest of the prison grounds.

- - Inmates reside in residential-style housing units and are
responsible for their own meal preparation and maintenance of their
housing units.