TOP B.C. HELLS ANGEL ARRESTED

Vancouver Chapter Head, 9 Others Charged In Largest Ever Gang Probe

The president of the Vancouver chapter of the Hells Angels is among 10 men
charged with trafficking cocaine and illegal guns in what police said
Monday is the largest investigation of biker gangs in B.C. history.

Those charged include six men allegedly connected to an outlaw motorcycle
gang in Prince George called the Renegades, which police describe as a
puppet club of the Hells Angels.

Police said the investigation lasted 20 months and included an undercover
operation and more than 100 officers.

"This is clearly breaking new ground to sustain an investigation of this
magnitude for this long," said Insp. Andy Richards, a biker-gang expert
with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit.

"Never before have this many Hells Angels and associates been arrested in
an investigation."

The investigation resulted in charges against Hells Angels Vancouver
chapter president Norman Edward Krogstad -- the highest-ranking member of
the Angels ever to face criminal charges in B.C.

"It's a wake-up call," said Insp. Bob Paulson, a biker-gang expert with the
RCMP. "What it shows is that they're not untouchable.... They can be had
[and] they will be had."

Krogstad, 57, of Surrey, is charged with 14 counts of trafficking cocaine
in Langley, Cache Creek, Boston Bar and Prince George between July 3, 2003
and Dec. 29, 2004.

Other Lower Mainland residents charged were Cedric Smith, 55, of Langley,
described by police as a senior member of the Vancouver chapter of the
Hells Angels, and David Patrick O'Hara, 43, of Surrey.

Smith is co-accused with Krogstad on 11 counts of trafficking cocaine.

O'Hara, a former member of the Vancouver chapter but a member of the
Mission chapter at the time of the alleged offences, is charged with three
counts of trafficking in marijuana and one count of trafficking cocaine in
Surrey.

Another Lower Mainland resident, Jason Cyrus Arkinstall, 31, of Surrey, is
charged with one count of trafficking in cocaine in Surrey.

William John Moore, 35, the alleged president of the Prince George
Renegades, is co-accused with Krogstad with three counts of trafficking in
cocaine in Prince George.

David George Gerow, 45, the former sergeant-at-arms of the Renegades and a
member at the time of the alleged offence, is charged with one count of
trafficking in cocaine.

Jason Dennis Townsend, 27, another Renegades member, is charged with one
count of trafficking in cocaine.

Three other Prince George men -- Darrin Allan Massey, George James McBeth
and Derek Charles Timmins -- have been charged in a seven-count indictment
with possessing and trafficking in prohibited weapons.

Police allege Timmins, 32, is a striker for the Renegades, meaning he has
not become a full-patch member. He is charged with five firearms offences.

Massey, 34, a former Renegades member, is charged with five firearms
offences, and McBeth, 36, an alleged associate, is charged with six
firearms offences.

During the operation, police seized $100,000 in cash, 11.3 kilograms of
marijuana, 14 kilograms of cocaine, and a number of restricted and
prohibited weapons, including four semi-automatic handguns, a sawed-off
shotgun, a fully automatic AK-47 assault rifle and a large assortment of
prohibited munitions.

Police also recovered in the Kamloops area three John Deere golf-course
lawn tractors valued at more than $100,000 that were stolen from Prince
George in 2003.

The investigation began in May 2003 after investigators in Prince George
identified a person who was willing to infiltrate biker gangs in both
Prince George and Vancouver.

In the past, police have had little luck in recruiting gang members to
testify against each other.

Paulson said he hopes this investigation will be just the first case of
police turning biker-gang members against each other.

"We're recruiting them to go against themselves," said Paulson. "There's
plenty of room in the witness-protection program and that's what we're using."

The investigation into the bikers was led by the RCMP's Greater Vancouver
Drug Section.

Drug Section Sgt. Dave Goddard said the large number of Angels members and
associates arrested makes it difficult for the organization to claim -- as
it has in the past -- that it is simply a motorcycle club.

"It will make people think twice about what the Hells Angels are really all
about," he said.

Richards said the arrests reflect a new commitment to fighting biker gangs
by police forces in the province.

"There's a greater level of cooperation between law-enforcement agencies in
the province now to target [biker gangs] and I think this [case] is in part
a reflection of that enhanced cooperation and integration of resources,"
said Richards.

All 10 men appeared in court Monday before B.C. Supreme Court Associate
Chief Justice Patrick Dohm.

The six men in Prince George appeared by video-conferencing. All wore red,
jail-issue clothing and all but one had close-cropped hair and beards.

The four Vancouver-area accused appeared in person at the high-security Air
India courtroom at the Vancouver Law Courts.

Of the 10, only McBeth was granted bail. That came with strict conditions:
that he continue to live at 2413 Lisgar in Prince George, that he post a
$5,000 surety, that he not possess firearms or ammunition, that he
surrender his passport and that he have no contact with the co-accused
Massey and Timmins.

Federal prosecutor Martha Devlin appeared in court to handle the drug
charges and provincial prosecutor Mark Levitz, in charge of organized-crime
prosecutions, is handling the firearms charges.

Krogstad, who has hired Vancouver defence lawyer Ken Westlake, will appear
at a bail hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. Feb. 4 along with his co-accused,
Smith, who has hired David Martin to represent him.

Westlake is also representing Arkinstall, who came to court wearing a black
T-shirt with "fcuk" on the back. His bail hearing is scheduled for Friday
at 2 p.m. with co-accused O'Hara, who is represented by defence lawyer Greg
DelBigio.

The remaining Prince George accused are scheduled for bail hearings at 9:30
a.m. Friday by video-conference.

Last fall, The Vancouver Sun reported that more than 30 criminal
prosecutions launched against members of the Hells Angels in B.C. over the
past decade have failed, ending in acquittals or the charges being stayed
by the Crown.

In fact, prosecutors failed to secure convictions against club members in
more than 60 per cent of the cases reviewed by The Sun -- including
allegations of drug trafficking, extortion and even assaults against police
officers.

On Monday, police said they were confident these latest charges will be
successful.

"That's always the ultimate test -- to see if the courts accept the
evidence that we've gathered," said Richards. "Based on what I know about
this specific case, I'm optimistic."

Goddard said one indication of the strength of the case is that all the
accused were charged by direct indictment -- a rare measure used by the
Crown to send cases directly to trial without a preliminary hearing.

"The very fact that we got the direct indictments should give an indication
that, not only are the police taking this seriously, but so are the
provincial and federal prosecutors," he said.

Backgrounds Of The Accused:

According to court records, on June 3, 2004, charges of extortion, assault
causing bodily harm and assault with a weapon against David Patrick O'Hara
were stayed by the Crown.

David George Gerow is already facing a number of other criminal charges:

- - Three counts of drug trafficking in Prince George dating back to the
spring and summer of 2004. Gerow is due in court in Prince George on April
6 to face those charges.

- - Charges of assault, uttering threats, mischief and taking or occupying a
vehicle without the owner's consent on Dec. 18, 2004, in Prince George. He
is still awaiting a trial date on those charges.

- - Theft over $5,000 in Fort St. John on Jan. 22, 2004. He is due in court
on Wednesday in Fort St. John to fix a date for trial.

On Aug. 30, 2000, Darrin Allan Massey was convicted in Kelowna of assault
causing bodily harm and received a nine-month conditional sentence.

The next year, on Feb. 27, 2001, Massey was convicted in Kelowna of
possessing drugs for the purposes of trafficking and was sentenced to six
months' jail and two years' probation.

Jason Dennis Townsend pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm in
Prince George on Oct. 24, 2001, and received one day in jail and one year's
probation.

He was also convicted on Sept. 22 of last year of possession of a
controlled substance in Prince George and received a $250 fine.

Townsend is due to appear in court in Prince George on Feb. 15 for
sentencing in connection with an assault on May 28, 2003.

And another trial on charges of production of a controlled substance, drug
possession and possession of stolen property is due to continue in Prince
George on March 18.

Jason Cyrus Arkinstall was convicted in Surrey of assault with a weapon on
Oct. 5, 2001, and sentenced to 50 hours' community service and a two-year
conditional sentence.

A separate trial for drug possession for the purposes of trafficking and
possession of property obtained by crime is due to continue in Surrey on
Feb. 17.

Arkinstall was also convicted in Surrey of mischief on March 9, 1999, and
received a $250 fine and six months' probation.