WILSON ADMITS ORDERING MURDERS

Two Hells Angels Killings Net Drug Dealer Life Term; Parole Possible in 4 Years

Paul Albert Wilson ordered the contract killings of two Hells Angels
associates because he felt threatened by both men, a Nova Scotia Supreme
Court hearing heard Wednesday.

Mr. Wilson, 38, was charged in October 2000 with first-degree murder in the
deaths of Robert MacFarlane, 34, and William St. Clair Wendelborg, 35.

But the former manager at Reflections cabaret in Halifax cut a deal with
the Crown after months of negotiations and pleaded guilty Wednesday to
reduced charges.

During a lengthy hearing in Halifax, Mr. Wilson pleaded guilty to
second-degree murder in the MacFarlane killing and to conspiring with
William Marriott and Larry Pace to kill Mr. Wendelborg.

In an emotional address, Mr. Wilson apologized to Mr. MacFarlane's widow
Denise, the Wendelborg family and his own family.

"Denise, as you have suspected for some time, I was instrumental in
Robert's death," Mr. Wilson said. "We were friends and I betrayed you. I
hope you can at some point forgive me although I do not ask or expect
anything from you."

Mr. Wilson told the packed courtroom that he has paid a very high price for
what he has done. The most devastating impact, he said, is the loss of his
wife Karen, who has divorced him, and their two young children.

He said he is committed to being a different person.

"I did not have to resort to a criminal lifestyle," he said. "I chose to do
that. And society is entitled to expect me to pay a heavy price."

Chief Justice Joseph Kennedy handed Mr. Wilson an automatic life sentence
in the MacFarlane case and 10 years concurrent on the conspiracy charge.

The judge set his parole eligibility at 10 years.

But because Mr. Wilson was granted double credit for the 40 months he spent
in custody before trial, he could apply for parole in about four years.

Mr. MacFarlane, a Halifax businessman, was gunned down in the Lakeside
Industrial Park outside Halifax in February 1997.

Mr. Wendelborg's decomposed body was found in October 1998 in woods in
Harrietsfield, Halifax County. He had been badly beaten and died of a
forced cocaine overdose.

Mr. Wilson wanted Mr. MacFarlane killed because he believed the Hatchet
Lake man was going to harm members of his family, defence lawyer Anne
Derrick told the court.

Okan Arslan, one of Mr. Wilson's drug couriers and a key Crown witness,
told police that before Mr. MacFarlane's murder, Mr. Wilson was very upset
that Mr. MacFarlane had threatened his mother, Beverley Wilson, after Mr.
MacFarlane was barred from Reflections. Ms. Wilson owned the cabaret.

"Okan Arslan told police about an incident in August 1996 when Mr.
MacFarlane returned to the bar and insisted on being served," Ms. Derrick said.

"When Mrs. Wilson told him he had to leave, Mr. MacFarlane made threats to
finish Mrs. Wilson, Paul Wilson and his family."

Mr. Wilson was not present.

"Robert MacFarlane returned to the bar with a gas can, threatening to burn
it down, damaged a coatroom and assaulted a waitress," Ms. Derrick said.

Staff called police and Mr. MacFarlane was charged with threats, property
damage, sexual assault and causing a disturbance.

Mr. Wilson and his mother decided not to make an issue of the incident and
the charges were dropped.

"Witnesses were afraid to testify against Mr. MacFarlane because they
feared he would seek retribution against them," Ms. Derrick said.

Mr. Arslan also told police that Mr. Wilson indicated that Mr. MacFarlane
had threatened to break into Mr. Wilson's home while he was away, tie up
his wife and children and rob him.

Mr. Wilson believed that "eliminating Mr. MacFarlane was the only realistic
option for protecting his family from serious physical harm or death," Ms.
Derrick said.

Crown attorney Frank Hoskins described for the court the circumstances
leading up to Mr. Wendelborg's death.

"William Marriott and Larry Pace entered into an agreement with Paul Wilson
to kill William St. Clair Wendelborg, as Paul Wilson perceived that William
St. Clair Wendelborg was a threat and therefore should be eliminated," Mr.
Hoskins said.

"After entering into the agreement, Paul Wilson had changed his mind and
tried to call off the contract because he did not want William St. Clair
Wendelborg killed and did not want to draw more police attention to himself."

Mr. Wilson told Mr. Arslan, who was later arrested in May 1999 on marijuana
cultivation charges, he "didn't want it (the murder) done and they did it
anyway."

Mr. Wilson gave Mr. Pace and Mr. Marriott two kilograms of hashish to sell.
After Mr. Wendelborg was killed, they told Mr. Wilson that they were
keeping the hash as payment for doing the deed and wanted more money.

Mr. Wilson also received a 12-year concurrent sentence Wednesday after
pleading guilty to 14 drug trafficking and proceeds-of-crimes charges.

The deaths of three potentially key witnesses had put the Crown's case
against Mr. Wilson in a precarious position.

Mr. Marriott, 38, hanged himself in his jail cell in August 2000 while
awaiting trial for Mr. Wendelborg's death.

Dany Kane, a reluctant biker-turned-informer, and his lover, Aime Simard,
both of Quebec, were charged with killing Mr. MacFarlane.

In August 2000, Mr. Kane, 31, died in his car of carbon monoxide poisoning
inside his Quebec garage. Police at the time called the circumstances
"curious."

Mr. Simard, 35, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the
MacFarlane killing and later testified against Mr. Kane, was stabbed to
death in his Saskatchewan prison cell last July 18.

Mr. Kane's trial ended with a stay of proceedings in December 1998 when a
judge concluded two veteran RCMP officers had lied in their testimony.

Mr. Pace, of Williamswood, was sentenced to six years in prison for being
an accessory by helping to dispose of Mr. Wendelborg's body. Mr. Pace, in
his late 30s, was paroled in January 2003.

In 2001, Mr. Marriott's girlfriend, Wanda Lynn Campbell, was sentenced to
three years in prison for helping Mr. Marriott evade justice. She wiped
blood off the walls after Mr. Marriott murdered Mr. Wendelborg in the
couple's apartment.