HELLS ANGELS STILL BIGGEST BIKER GANG

A report on organized crime says the Hells Angels - with 34 chapters across
the country, including a clubhouse in Coquitlam - remain the largest biker
gang in Canada.

The Criminal Intelligence Service Canada (CISC) released its 2004 report
Friday.

The report states that outlaw motorcycle gangs, like the Hells Angels,
"derive significant income from various criminal activities across the
country such as prostitution, fraud and extortion. However, drug
trafficking, particularly cocaine, marijuana and increasingly
methamphetamine, remains the primary source of illicit income for organized
motorcycle gangs."

The influence of the Hells Angels, the report continues, is growing in B.C.
and Ontario, while declining in Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.

"In some areas, the Hells Angels are facing increased competition from
other organized crime groups, such as Asian-based networks."

Asian-based organized crime, the report states, is also considered "highly
active" in the Lower Mainland.

Asian-based criminal groups in the Lower Mainland are involved in
widespread multiple, residential marijuana grow operations as well as the
importing and distribution of counterfeit tobacco and consumer goods, such
as movies and music.

Asian-based crime groups are also involved in the trafficking of
methamphetamine and "the smuggling/trafficking of people, particularly
women from Southeast Asia, to Canada and the U.S."

The CISC is a partnership of 380 law enforcement agencies that works with
government, academia and the private sector to develop strategies to combat
organized and serious crime.