JURY CONVICTS NINE HELLS ANGELS ASSOCIATES

Verdicts a Major Victory in Quebec's Fight Against Feared Biker Crime Syndicate

MONTREAL -- They thought they stood above the law, trafficking cocaine
by the tonnes, conspiring to kill dozens of people, terrorizing a province.

But yesterday the drawn-out trial of nine Hells Angels associates in
Montreal ended with a jury finding them all guilty.

The verdicts were a major victory for the authorities in their fight
against Quebec's most feared crime syndicate. The massive police
investigation had taken three years and the ensuing legal proceedings
another three.

It was the first so-called mega-trial to reach the verdict stage in
Canada. Other recent large-scale proceedings against organized crime
had ended prematurely, twice in Montreal and once in Edmonton, raising
concerns about the viability of such a cumbersome approach.

But with organized crime so prevalent, "mega-trials are here to stay,"
Crown prosecutor Madeleine Giauque told reporters yesterday.

The verdicts -- 26 guilty counts on charges of drug trafficking,
conspiracy to murder and gangsterism -- came after a gruelling
process. The jurors, who deliberated for 12 days, had been hearing
evidence since Feb. 4, 2003, making the high-profile case perhaps the
longest criminal jury trial in Canadian history.

This Superior Court trial also marked the first time a jury rendered
guilty verdicts on gangsterism, a new offence that calls for tougher
sentences when major crimes are committed by a gang member.

Many observers had doubted that a jury could handle such a long,
complex case.

The trial dragged on, with defence lawyers making headlines for acting
in crude, insolent ways, filing many motions the judge rejected as
pointless and asking for higher legal-aid fees.

But thanks to wiretaps, informants and a turncoat criminal, Dany Kane,
who enabled the police to videotape secret biker meetings, the Crown
convinced the jury that all the defendants understood, agreed to and
abetted in their gang's murderous, monopolistic goals.

The defendants were charged with 27 criminal counts but the jury
cleared one, Sebastien Beauchamp, of conspiracy to murder.

The verdicts do not end the bikers' legal troubles. Six of them -- Luc
Bordeleau, Andre Couture, Eric Fournier, Bruno Lefebvre, Richard
Mayrand and Ronald Paulin -- still face multiple first-degree-murder
charges.

The nine defendants are part of a group of 91 who were charged when
police cracked down in March, 2001, against the Nomads, an elite
chapter of the Hells Angels.

At another courthouse yesterday, the Crown announced that two Nomads
who were among the 91, Michel Rose and Andre Chouinard, would plead
guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, drug-trafficking and
gangsterism charges. According to trial evidence, they initiated a
multi-tonne importation of Colombian cocaine.

Also yesterday, the trial began for yet another two suspects among the
91. The prosecution portrayed two Hamilton-area residents, Walter
Stadnick and Donald Stockford, as leaders who spearheaded the Hells
Angels' strategic expansion into Ontario and Manitoba.

The two men were key players rather than foot soldiers, Crown attorney
Randall Richmond said. "The dirty work is done by the lower ranks and
the top ranks don't get their hands dirty."

Altogether, yesterday's developments mean that 78 of the 91 alleged
gang members have either pleaded guilty or have been convicted of
major offences.

Sentencing arguments for the nine convicted yesterday are set for
March 22. The next court date for Mr. Rose and Mr. Chouinard is on
Thursday.

The jurors in the mega-trial heard from 146 witnesses and saw more
than 1,380 exhibits. The evidence came from more than 274,000 wiretaps
and 1,100 police surveillance operations.

The trial had 17 defendants when it began in 2002 under Mr. Justice
Jean-Guy Boilard. However, after four months before a jury, Judge
Boilard suddenly quit when he was criticized by a disciplinary council
for chewing out a defence lawyer.

When the trial started again with a new jury and a new magistrate,
nine of the defendants had pleaded guilty and another one was released
for health reasons.

The Crown says that between 1995 and 2001, the Hells Angels
systematically killed rival gangsters to monopolize Montreal's drug
trade.