COURT LOOKS AT POLICE INFORMANT'S ROLE

Arguing That Agent Broke The Law, B.C. Defendants Want Drug Case
Dismissed

VANCOUVER - Long-time bouncer and "debt collector" Michael Plante was
facing an extortion charge and the possibility of a lengthy jail term
when he offered in 2003 to become an informant for police against the
Hells Angels.

A few months later, the 5-foot-8, 250-pound weightlifting enthusiast
and steroid user -- nicknamed Big Mike -- was free on bail and back to
his criminal lifestyle, this time as RCMP informant E9222.

For more than a year, he was permitted to possess guns, transport
large quantities of methamphetamine, traffic in steroids, act as
"muscle" for the Hells Angels and commit other criminal acts, all
under the approving eye of the RCMP.

By June the following year, Mr. Plante, 39, had entered into a
contract to receive more than $1-million for his work as the key
investigative tool in Project E-Pandora, a 23-month-long probe of the
East End Vancouver chapter of the Hells Angels, considered to be a
national priority by the RCMP.

"The reasonable person understands that any tactics used by the police
will include the use of characters who are less than savoury,"
then-inspector Bob Paulson wrote in a confidential memo to his RCMP
superiors about the use of Mr. Plante as a police agent.

"No one expects that a priest will be able to infiltrate the Hells
Angels and no one believes that a Hells Angel will not be involved in
criminal activity."

The RCMP admits the case involved the unprecedented use of an agent
taking part in criminal acts. But it appeared to pay off in July of
2005 when the $7-million E-Pandora investigation culminated with the
arrest of 18 people, including one of the RCMP's two key targets. The
charges included extortion, drug trafficking, possession of explosives
and committing offences for the benefit of a criminal
organization.

The arrests were a public-relations triumph, according to an internal
article published this year in the RCMP Gazette by the force's
strategic communications department. The article said the RCMP "won
the PR war" against the Hells Angels and convinced the public it was
not a "gentleman's club."

The euphoria may now be somewhat muted because the police agent dubbed
the "million-dollar man" in court this fall could ultimately prove to
be a multimillion-dollar liability for the RCMP and the federal
Justice Department.

The conduct of Mr. Plante is at the heart of an abuse-of-process
motion by (redacted) and (redacted), who are on trial on charges
of trafficking one kilogram of methamphetamine.

The two defendants are asking Mr. Justice Victor Curtis of B.C.
Supreme Court to dismiss the charges, arguing that the RCMP crossed
the line when it allowed Mr. Plante to participate in serious criminal
activity as part of the E-Pandora probe.

The stakes are high for police and the Crown. Martha Devlin, deputy
director of the federal prosecution service in B.C., said recently in
court that the Justice Department will stay charges in all five of its
E-Pandora trials if Judge Curtis rules that there has been an abuse of
process.

Police are permitted to grant "exemptions" from the provisions of the
Controlled Drug and Substances Act to someone acting under their
control. The Criminal Code was changed in December of 2001 so police
or their agents can commit criminal acts if they are "reasonable and
proportional" to an investigation and do not involve violence. Mr.
Plante was granted more than 70 exemptions in E-Pandora.

The Supreme Court of Canada has traditionally given wide latitude to
police in undercover investigations. "The investigation of crime and
the detection of criminals is not a game to be governed by the
Marquess of Queensberry rules," it said more than 20 years ago. Tricks
and deceit are permitted as long as the police conduct does not "shock
the conscience of the community."

The prosecution of (redacted) and (redacted) is one of the first
times a court has been asked to look at more than police tricks and
decide how far the state can go in sanctioning illegal acts.

Even Judge Curtis predicted during the abuse-of-process hearing that
the issue will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court of Canada.

Mr. Plante looked very much the part of a bouncer when he testified
for several days in B.C. Supreme Court this fall. He often wore a
black turtleneck and black pants.

He agreed his situation was "extraordinary" and believed he had a
"licence" to commit crime, including the threatening of police targets
if necessary.

In January of 2005, Mr. Plante quit as an agent because of the stress
and after he was denied a promotion from official "friend" to
"hangaround" status by the Hells Angels.

A number of RCMP officers testified to defend the use of Mr. Plante,
including Bob Paulson, who is now a Chief Superintendent in Ottawa and
the director-general of major and organized crime intelligence.

Chief Supt. Paulson rejected a suggestion by defence lawyer Greg
DelBigio that the Hells Angels were the "pot of gold" for the RCMP and
it was willing to overlook acts by Mr. Plante that were not authorized.

The senior officer explained that the concerns in using Mr. Plante as
a police agent were balanced against the unique opportunity to
successfully investigate the Hells Angels. "They have been essentially
immune from any meaningful enforcement action which would mitigate the
threat they pose to our community."

More than 20 kilograms of methamphetamine, worth more than $400,000,
were permitted to be sold on the street during the E-Pandora
investigation.

RCMP Assistant Commissioner Raf Souccar testified that he engaged in
"soul searching" to allow this activity and these were "uncharted"
waters, although he insisted it was an appropriate use of police powers.

Final arguments in the abuse-of-process motion begin on Jan. 29. Mr.
Plante is living at an undisclosed location while he waits to find out
whether he will have to testify at the other E-Pandora trials, which
are all on hold until Judge Curtis rules.

The judge may have provided a hint about his views in a case four
years ago when he declined to dismiss charges in a "reverse sting"
operation by police involving an offer to sell 50 kilograms of cocaine.

"Undercover police officers making offers to sell illegal drugs in a
situation in which the drugs are not going to be released into the
community are not causing any significant social problems that I am
aware of," he wrote.

"When the law concerns itself about not letting the ends justify the
means it must examine how serious the means in question are in the
particular circumstances."