Hung Van (Scarface) Bui was found slumped in the driver's seat of a car Monday night, the victim of a targeted shooting.  

Hung Van Bui, 27, is believed to be the victim of a targeted shooting in Vancouver Monday night.
Handout photoThey came back and finished him off," said the source.Hung Van (Scarface) Bui, 27, was found slumped in the driver's seat of a car Monday night, the victim of a targeted shooting. Police have not identified the victim but a high-placed source told the Vancouver Province it was Bui - a man with well-known criminal affiliations who survived last summer's gangland style slayings at Fortune Happiness restaurant. The Aug. 9 shooting at the all-night eatery - where two masked gunmen opened fire on a table of nine people, killing two people and injuring six, including Bui - remains unsolved. Bui was shot at least six times, said the source, but survived his wounds. He had "a million enemies" and was known to have been involved in ripping off drug dealers, added the source.Bui was also the prime suspect in the 1999 murder of 35-year-old UPS courier Andrew Allan, who was stabbed once in the abdomen in the parking lot of an Edmonton curling club.Police believe the attack stemmed from a road-rage incident half a block away. A Canada-wide warrant for Bui's arrest was issued and his photo was plastered all over the local papers. Two months later, Edmonton police collared Bui, then 20 and a suspected member of a cocaine-trafficking gang, after he was caught fleeing the scene of a fatal shooting. The driver of the car Bui was in was shot and killed. Police believe the shooting was part of a turf war between rival drug gangs.Bui was charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Allan, but in 2000, charges against him were stayed after the prosecution determined there was not enough evidence to justify proceeding against Bui.
He surfaced again in B.C. two years later in a break-and-enter of a Vancouver residence. In August 2004, he was sentenced to two years less a day in jail and 18 months' probation. The burglary appears to have been violent: Court documents reveal that an "extensive amount" of the victim's blood was found in the house. Bui himself sought treatment at a hospital for what the documents called a "particularly ugly wound on his face, with what looks like many stitches."The disfiguring scar would leave Bui with the nickname Scarface in underworld circles. Almost a decade after Andrew Allan's death, his mother, Giovanna Kostiw, still believes Bui is guilty, even though he was never tried or convicted in court.
"The Edmonton City Police told us they were 99.9 per cent sure he was the man," said Kostiw, 76, from her home. "They know who did it. But they just couldn't prove it."
Kostiw, who still has a framed photo of Allan in her living room and drinks a toast to him every night, said she's held on to the belief that justice will eventually be done.
"(Our family) figured if this justice system couldn't get him then the one above would," she said, her voice breaking. "There is a higher court than the Supreme Court."
The news of Bui's death came as a shock to Kostiw and while she may have gained a bit of consolation "in a roundabout way" she said it's still a sad story all around: "I've always felt sorry for that poor young man, that creature's, mother," she said. "She lost her son a good number of years before I lost mine."

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Hells Angels, Rebels, Bandidos, Black Uhlans, Outcasts and Finks reside such as Redcliffe, Caboolture, Sunshine Coast, Maryborough, Gympie and Bundabe  


The operation dubbed Golf Cyclone II is targeting places where Hells Angels, Rebels, Bandidos, Black Uhlans, Outcasts and Finks reside such as Redcliffe, Caboolture, Sunshine Coast, Maryborough, Gympie and Bundaberg districts.Police have arrested 12 people as part of an operation targeting members of outlaw motorcycle gangs in Queensland.Drugs, including cannabis and methamphetamines, and weapons, ranging from batons and a pellet paint gun, were uncovered from searches of several houses on Thursday.Two women and 10 men were arrested on a total of 20 charges, including possession of a dangerous drug and possession of a dangerous weapon.They will appear in local courts in August.North Coast Regional Crime Coordinator Superintendent John Maloney said officers would continue to crack down on organised crime within the region."The first phase of this operation was carried out in the Sunshine Coast and Maryborough Districts in May with 14 people arrested," Mr Maloney said."The second phase today has resulted in the arrest of 12 people who it is alleged are involved in illegal activities of outlaw motorcycle gangs."

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Apple Valley shoot out.  

Two groups of apparent gang members opened fire on each other last evening, wounding one man and sending 16 others running through an alley near an Apple Valley community center, San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies say this morning.
The wounded man phoned deputies shortly before 6 p.m. Monday, saying he'd been wounded twice, investigators say in a written statement. The shooting occurred near the James A. Woody Community Center at Navajo and Ottawa Roads.
Friends took the wounded man to a local hospital where officials said he was in stable condition. No arrests were made.

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MS-13 gang members, who were wearing black FBI shirts, executed several home invasions in the Houston area a Columbian gang is targeting the wealthy  

Three years ago, a group of well-trained MS-13 gang members, who were wearing black FBI shirts, executed several home invasions in the Houston area. Then, one night in November of 2005, real agents were waiting for the home invaders. In a hail of gunfire, two gang members were killed and two others wounded. Thirty six months later, home invasions across the country are on the rise and in Houston; investigators believe a Columbian gang is targeting the wealthy. The latest home invasion happened in the upscale community of Piney Point Village at about 2 p.m. on July 24. A high school student home for the summer heard a knock at the door.
When he went to answer the door, three men barged in. At least one of the men had a gun. They took the family safe and some electronics. The teen that was home told investigators that all three robbers communicated with each other in Spanish.
Now, Houston ATF agents are working on the case. Earlier this month, Dallas police arrested a group of men they think are responsible for 70 home invasions in 20 North Texas cities. Police said the leader of the gang was Ernest Ross. Like the Houston cases, the victims in North Texas would be considered wealthy.
Moreover, it appears that the gang would research their victims by going online. They would also usually pose at cops. “They would on many occasions dress in law enforcement-type gear. They would often tell the homeowners they had a warrant for their arrest,” said Dallas Police Detective Duane Boy. “Once they got in, they would bind them and in some cases they did torture them.” With the ATF and the FBI working with local law enforcement agencies to catch the criminals, officials hope to put a halt to the home invasions sooner than later. Until then, police warn that homeowners need to be careful when a stranger knocks on the door.

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Shots fired during an altercation between two males, one of whom was allegedly armed with a handgun  

Winnipeg police spokesman Const. Rose Guiboche said no one in the truck was struck by the bullets, fired in the 300-block of Kennedy Street shortly after 4 p.m. Guiboche said she was unaware how many hit the truck or where.
The shots were fired during an altercation between two males, one of whom was allegedly armed with a handgun, and others, a source said. No one was injured.
Police said the males, aged 14 and 18, are associated with a street gang. The males were arrested after a standoff and are facing firearm- and drug-related charges.
Police have not confirmed who the intended target or targets were. Witnesses told police several people fled the area when three or four shots were fired. Investigators are hoping to speak to the people who ran off.
The standoff began when officers arrived at the scene and two males ran into an apartment block at 388 Kennedy St. Witnesses said one of the males was carrying a handgun. Police blocked the street and evacuated residents as a precaution.
The tactical support team was brought in and, after a few hours, two males and a woman were removed from a suite and arrested. The woman is not facing charges.
Guiboche said the suspects don't live in the building but know someone who does. Police obtained a warrant to search the suite. The organized crime unit conducted the search early yesterday and found a handgun, magazine, 100 grams of crack cocaine and drug-trafficking paraphernalia. The crack is valued at $2,000. Several residents of the building said they don't feel safe in the area anymore due to rising violence, drug dealing and tensions between rival gangs. Guiboche said residents should be concerned about gang activity in the area but not afraid. "We believe things are changing. It's going to take time," Guiboche said.
Danny Davis Ballantyne, 18, is charged with several firearm-related offences, possession for the purpose of trafficking and two counts of failing to comply with a recognizance. He is in custody at the Winnipeg Remand Centre.
A 14-year-old boy is facing similar firearm- and drug-related charges. He is in custody at the Manitoba Youth Centre.

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Tyrone Lamar Members convicted of two homicides and an assault that prosecutors believe may have been a 10-week-long revenge spree by Members  

Monroe County Court jurors have convicted Tyrone Lamar Members of two homicides and an assault that prosecutors believe may have been a 10-week-long revenge spree by Members against rival street gang members.Members, 19, was convicted of second-degree murder in the shooting of Rasean Roberts on May 11, 2007, and the shooting of Jamel Wigington on June 7, 2007, and second-degree assault in the wounding of Jason Cole on Aug. 22, 2007.Members also was convicted of second- and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon.Judge John J. Connell scheduled sentencing for Aug. 15. Members faces a prison term of up to 65 years to life, said Assistant District Attorney Jennifer A. Whitman.
Jurors delivered the verdict Friday night. But the verdict wasn't official until Monday because a juror became ill and was taken to a hospital after the verdict was reached but before it was announced.During a brief court proceeding Monday, the juror who became ill confirmed his verdict to Connell. The remaining 11 jurors also said the verdict was unanimous.Prosecutors alleged the shootings came after an altercation outside a girl's 16th birthday party on Salina Street in which Cole punched Members in the face, knocking him down, after Members bumped into him. Members got up firing a pistol and hit Roberts in the chest, the prosecution said. None of the combatants had been invited to the party.Wigington, 17, died a day after he was shot in the upper body while sitting in a car on Thurston Road. A witness said she saw Members carrying a shotgun at the time of the shooting.
Cole, 19, was shot in the arm outside his home on Post Avenue. He was initially uncooperative with police but testified that Members was his assailant.
Before Members' trial began, the prosecution told Connell that it hoped several witnesses would provide a potential motive: that Members is reputedly a member of Thurston Zoo, a southwest Rochester gang, and all three victims were members of Mafia Assassins.But the prosecution chose not to ask about alleged gang affiliation. Whitman said the issue could have become muddled because witnesses would have offered different interpretations of what constituted gang membership.
In her summation to jurors, Whitman said witnesses were obviously scared, with one looking warily at Members and asking Connell whether she had to identify Members as the shooter in one of the cases.
"If they (witnesses) were in here and pointed him out, they've got to worry," said Whitman, who noted that only three witnesses came forward of 75 people who were present when Roberts was slain. "That is the reality in the city of Rochester."
Members' lawyer, Jennifer Moll, said the lack of specificity by witnesses created insufficient proof of guilt. "We submit to you there's enough reasonable doubt that Tyrone didn't commit any of these crimes," she told jurors.

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Glasgow gang wars esculate into murder rival gangs armed with blades, including a Samurai sword, clashed in a terrifying street fight.  

Glaswegian was killed as rival gangs armed with blades, including a Samurai sword, clashed in a terrifying street fight.Police were last night probing the murder of Charles Bowman, 32, who was dead on arrival at hospital after the bloody battle on Sunday night.Four other men were injured as the two gangs clashed in a normally quiet street in the east end of Glasgow.One of them was Douglas Tennent, 37, who innocently stopped to offer help and was stabbed four times in the face in front of his terrified family - including his three-year-old daughter Charli.Locals in Carmyle, Glasgow, believe the battle was between rival gangs from the area and the nearby Westburn area of Cambuslang, where murder victim Charles lived.In Westburn last night, tributes were being left at his home by grieving friends and family.A Rangers flag hung over a car in his driveway, with messages and tributes from his loved ones.In the main street of Westburn, a makeshift memorial was created with Old Firm shirts, scarves and flags all bearing tributes.One message read: "Goodbye Uncle Chick. Rest in Peace."Police said last night: "Police were called to a report of a largescale disturbance in Carmyle Avenue near to Gardenside Avenue. On arrival, they found five men injured."The men were all taken to local hospitals. The 32-year-old man was pronounced dead on arrival."The four other men are being treated for their injuries."It is believed police were already on the scene when Douglas was attacked.One witness said: "This is a peaceful street and nothing like this ever happens here."Two cars full of men came screeching into the street.
"Then they all jumped out with bottles, baseball bats, knives and bricks and started laying into each other. The battle went on for about half an hour and by the time the police arrived there were guys lying bleeding in the street.
"Then a car came into the street, driven by a man with a female passenger and a kid in the back.
"He stopped and rolled down his window.
"Some guy who looked as if he had just been watching then sauntered over to the car, as if he was going to speak to the driver."The next thing I noticed was the woman jumping out of the car screaming that her husband had been stabbed.
"When his attacker ran away, I saw there was blood everywhere and he was in a really bad state."
Douglas's partner Patricia Bradley was too upset to speak last night at their home just a few streets from the scene of the battle.His sister Janice said he was having surgery last night on his face and added: "His hand was also damaged when he lifted it to try to protect his face so he'll probably need more surgery.
"We're really shocked about what has happened, especially in such a quiet place."
A source close to the family said: "We think the guy with the knife has taken him for someone else and thought he was winding down his window to get involved."
'They all jumped out with bottles, bats and knives and layed into each other'

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Police say they've been bracing for retribution following the July 5 murder of high-ranking gang member Roger Chin, who was gunned down in his car.  

Insp. Kevan Stuart said the victim, who's not known as a gang member, was shot repeatedly in the abdomen while in his car, but managed to drive himself to Warring's home in his bullet-riddled vehicle. The man in his late 20s or early 30s suffered non-life-threatening injuries. The gang unit is investigating possible organized crime links to the shooting, said Stuart, adding the victim hasn't co-operated with police. "We need them to follow through fully with their information. It takes courage," said Stuart, voicing concern at the tight-lipped behaviour of victims and others following possible gang-related crimes. "Sooner or later, some innocent person's going to get killed but when that happens, it's too late ... somebody out there knows information about this incident."
Stuart also revealed another shooting accompanied a burglary at a home in northeast Calgary about 12:20 a.m. Sunday.
Nobody was injured in the incident but police are trying to determine if it's related to the later shooting nearby, he said. Stuart expressed frustration at the rash of gunplay in Calgary that on Saturday left a man dead on a Chinatown street.
"This isn't what Calgary's all about. This isn't what made Calgary the most prosperous city in North America," he said.

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Christopher Byron Lord, was well known to police. He died after showing up at a local hospital with a gunshot wound on Saturday.  

Christopher Byron Lord, was well known to police. He died after showing up at a local hospital with a gunshot wound on Saturday. Still, the full circumstances of the killing remain a mystery. Police have identified suspects, but haven't laid charges. They are confident that the shooting happened somewhere around 96 Avenue and 176 Street, about six blocks from where they initially combed a small park for clues following Lord's death. Police first became aware of the case after someone drove Lord to the hospital sometime after the shooting, between 5 and 6 a.m. Saturday. He later died of blood loss. Lord's death comes three years after he found himself in trouble for his role in a beating over a drug debt in Grande Prairie. Last February, he pleaded guilty to unlawful confinement after a man was lured into a crackhouse and beaten on June 10, 2005. Lord, who showed up while the crime was in progress, admitted in court to watching over the victim in confinement.
For his role, Lord received a six-month jail sentence. At the time, court heard that Lord, who was married with children, had been taking steps to recover from a substance-abuse problem. The case was his first conviction on a violent criminal offence. In the meantime, police in Edmonton are asking residents in the area where the killing took place to check their property for anything suspicious. The case is the city's 15th homicide of the year.

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Timothy "Beefy" Bartruff high-ranking motorcycle gang leader accused of dealing large quantities of methamphetamines is back in Northwest Indiana  

Timothy "Beefy" Bartruff, 50, was arraigned Monday in U.S. District Court on charges of conspiring to manufacture and possess methamphetamines as part of a network in southern Porter County and Newton and Jasper counties.high-ranking motorcycle gang leader accused of dealing large quantities of methamphetamines is finally back in Northwest Indiana, where he was indicted in June on a narcotics trafficking charge.
The former Kouts man was the national president of the Indiana-based Invaders motorcycle gang in the 1980s, before he went to prison for dealing in methamphetamines, news accounts from the time say.Prosecutors in this summer's case have said many of the people affiliated with the conspiracy were either Invaders members or associates. Gang gear decorated with swastikas and Invaders logos was recovered from one of the alleged meth labs in Kouts.Bartruff was arrested in St. Louis in June on the latest meth charges, which involved scores of arrests across northern Indiana and in Chicago, St. Louis and Denver.Bartruff was extradited last week to northern Indiana, as one of the 37 people charged in an investigation involving undercover informants and a large number of tapped phone calls.
Also arraigned Monday in Hammond was Christopher Krug, 31, of Wheatfield, who faces four counts of conspiring to manufacture meth.Krug's arrest Monday leaves only one outstanding fugitive in the bust -- Brandy Pulver, 33, of Knox.Pulver is among the figures facing the least severe charges in the case, involving simple possession of pseudoephedrine that she knew someone else would use to make meth.

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Members of the Gangster Disciples, Black Disciples, Latin Kings and Four Corner Hustlers rated out Chicago auto dealers  

Two former Chicago auto dealers were convicted of turning their businesses into money-laundering havens for drug-dealing street gangs. Amir Hosseini, 50, of Winnetka and Hossein Obaei, 54, of Northbrook, were immediately taken into custody by marshals after being convicted of dozens of counts of racketeering, money laundering, bank fraud, bribery and structuring deposits to evade federal scrutiny. The two men convicted of 98 criminal charges, may end up getting life terms.The drug dealers used cash to buy more than 800 luxury cars, including Mercedes Benz, Jaguar and BMW models, according to prosecutors. Fitzgerald said fake transactions would be created on paper to look as if the cars were bought for less than $10,000 so that required paperwork did not have to be completed. As part of the alleged fraud, prosecutors accuse the defendants of placing liens on cars they sold to drug dealers and gang members, falsely indicating the dealership held security interests in the cars so the defendants could get the cars back if they were seized by law enforcement, prosecutors said. At the trial, which began Jan. 22, members of the Gangster Disciples, Black Disciples, Latin Kings and Four Corner Hustlers testified that they used proceeds from sales of heroin and cocaine to buy Jaguars, BMWs, Cadillacs and other luxury vehicles from the two defendants. Prosecutors said Hosseini and Obaei were aware that drug money was paying for the luxury autos. Evidence showed that Hosseini transferred $100,000 of the cash to Iran but prosecutors declined to comment on the reason.When arrested, both men carried American and Iranian passports.Prosecutors said the two owners and two managers of the three dealerships on the city's West Side had allegedly laundered more than $9 million since 2001. "We're not talking about car dealers who sold cars to people who happened to be drug dealers or sold cars to people despite the fact that they were drug dealers. We're talking about a car dealership that was in the business to cater to people who were drug dealers and gang bangers," Fitzgerald said. The defendants Amir Hosseini, 48, of Winnetka, described as the owner and operator of Standard Leasing Sales, currently known as Amer Leasing Sales, and a partial owner in SHO Auto Credit; Ruhollah Bambouyani, 54, of California and formerly of Glenview, described as Hosseini's business partner at Standard; and Ramona Rodriguez, 38, of Chicago, described as the finance manager and office manager of both Standard and American Car Exchange.
Prosecutors also charged Hossein Obaei, 52, of Northbrook, who owned and operated American Car Exchange and was a partial owner in SHO Auto Credit. Obaei also was charged with aiding and abetting a cocaine- and heroin-trafficking ring allegedly operated by some of his customers. Federal agents and Chicago police also seized more than 100 cars from the dealerships and searched the defendants' offices and homes. According to a criminal complaint, the defendants allegedly sold cars to people they knew were drug dealers or gang members in exchange for cash, "knowing that the transactions were designed to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership and control of the proceeds of their customers' drug-trafficking activities."

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Lerome "L'il Rome" Franklin,Floyd Aaron "YG" Martin,Secrets of the Trigga Mob Gang  

For two weeks, the secrets of the Trigga Mob Gang have spilled out in a Sacramento courtroom, into a story of fear and danger – and the newest twist on the way things work in the city's modern-day gang life.Virtually unknown outside its relatively small membership and the few streets it seeks to control in North Sacramento, the Trigga Mob is still a focus of murder and witness intimidation investigations, and it remains a key manipulator of drug activity on one of the area's meanest streets, according to trial testimony and other court records.
Its reputed leader has a tattoo that identifies him as a "five-star general." He's on trial along with another TMG member who police say is a top "soldier" in the outfit. They're accused of trying to kill a loosely affiliated gangster who they thought had turned snitch. If the Trigga Mob is limited in its geographic reach, it is hugely significant in what it represents about Sacramento gangs. Its 10 to 25 members make up what police and academics call a gang "subset." In TMG's case, it's the long-established Del Paso Heights Bloods that provides the larger umbrella group. And the Trigga Mob's relatively recent emergence exemplifies the splintering of larger "sets" that operate under the banner of the better-known Crips and Bloods gangs.Besides the Trigga Mob, there is its main rival – Keep It Lit. Also on the north side are the True Heights Villains, Elm Street, the Farm Boys, the Beast Mob and the Flat Dogs. All identify with Del Paso Heights and all claim Blood affiliation.Multiply them by the rest of the city's high-crime neighborhoods where broken families and social ills turn young people onto the streets, and the picture of Sacramento gangs in the year 2008 comes more into focus, one leading local gang expert said."It's been happening for the past few years," California State University, Sacramento, criminal justice professor Jim Hernandez said of the fragmentation. "We start out with Crips and Bloods and Norteños and Sureños, and as the gangs have kept growing, you start getting a difference in personalities. They start splitting up, and they become different gang groups and they have different things going on."The breakdown carries potentially ominous consequences. Hernandez said it may make it tougher for police and prosecutors to convince juries that a bunch of fellas from the neighborhood are acting in concert as a gang, even as the same guys are wreaking havoc at the same time in their smaller patches of turf.
"Now we have independent gangs, with tattoos from groups that may not mean anything. And with some gang membership having a fast turnover, it may be more difficult to tackle. It's much more complicated."
The tale of the Trigga Mob is being told in Department 32 at Sacramento Superior Court in the case of the People v. Lerome "L'il Rome" Franklin, 24, and Floyd Aaron "YG" Martin, 21. They're accused of conspiracy and attempted murder. If convicted, they face sentences of 25 years to life.According to trial and preliminary hearing testimony, Franklin (according to a police description of his tattoos, he's the "five-star general") called Martin, the "soldier," from downtown's Main Jail on March 15, 2007, and told Martin to "get on money."
"Money" was the nickname of a reputed Blood associate named Timothy Hurst. Franklin believed Hurst set up his arrest earlier that day on robbery and other charges. Police and prosecutors took Franklin's phrasing to mean that he wanted Martin to do Hurst some harm.That night, outside the Economy Inn on El Camino Avenue, someone shot Hurst five times."It's a done deal," Martin told Franklin in a conversation taped later on the jail telephone line, according to a district attorney's cover sheet contained in court documents.Hurst survived the onslaught. When police questioned him shortly after the attack, he declined to cooperate. Later, he testified that he feared another assault. He also testified that he feared the shooters might target his sister and niece.

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Cedric Baxter Smith, 59, a full-patch member of the Vancouver Hells Angels, is missing and feared dead.  

Cedric Baxter Smith, 59, was one of the early members of the powerful biker gang, which is gathering in Langley this weekend to mark the 25th anniversary of its first chapters in B.C.
full-patch member of the Vancouver Hells Angels who unwittingly introduced a police informant to the organized crime group is missing and feared dead, The Vancouver Sun has learned.Smith was out on parole on a series of drug-trafficking convictions when he was last seen by his club brethren on the Victoria Day long weekend.
He failed to report to his probation officer June 17 and the next day, RCMP visited his Langley home in an unsuccessful bid to find him.
Police then heard from a senior Vancouver Hells Angels member on June 27 that Smith might have met with "foul play." RCMP located his abandoned vehicle in a Langley alley later that day.Insp. Gary Shinkaruk, who heads the RCMP's Outlaw Motorcycle Gang unit, confirmed that Smith has vanished without a trace."Cedric Smith of the Vancouver Chapter Hells Angels has been reported missing for some time now," Shinkaruk said. "We don't know where he is. We haven't found him yet."
Smith was the first Hells Angels member to have contact with a police agent who had already secretly agreed to infiltrate clubs in Vancouver and Prince George in a covert operation dubbed Project Essen.The investigation led to 10 major arrests in January 2005, including Smith and Vancouver club president Norman Krogstad. All the accused eventually pleaded guilty to various drug and gun charges, making the project the most successful prosecution of B.C. bikers to date.
Because of the guilty pleas, the police agent, who is now in the witness protection program, did not end up testifying.
Smith is not the only biker in the case who may have met with a violent end. Co-accused William (Billy) Moore, who headed the Hells Angels puppet club in Prince George, was slain in March 2005. The bullet-riddled body of the Renegades president was found slumped in his car near the charred remains of his rural home. The murder remains unsolved.Moore had extensive contact with the police agent during the 18-month undercover operation. Members of both the Angels and Renegades praised Moore at his funeral, held under the watchful eye of police.
At the time, Hells Angels spokesman Rickey Ciarniello, who owns the Vancouver chapter clubhouse, called Moore "a nice man" and said he was shocked at the murder.
Ciarniello refused to disclose Thursday if he had spoken to the RCMP about Smith's disappearance."I have nothing to say about that," Ciarniello said. "I am not going to say anything about it."At Smith and Krogstad's sentencing hearing, prosecutor Martha Devlin laid out the Crown case against the pair. She said the police agent began meeting Smith in June 2003 at his Langley home and was soon purchasing kilos of cocaine for $39,600 each. Some of the coke was delivered to a nearby Wendy's restaurant. The agent would leave the code 666 on Smith's pager as a signal to meet at the restaurant. Some of the coke was sold to the agent by Smith in Cache Creek and Boston Bar.At one point, when the police agent complained his kilogram was an ounce "short," Smith arranged a meeting with the agent and Krogstad, who was also charged with trafficking cocaine in Prince George with the Renegades and Moore.
When Smith was arrested, police found $73,000 at his house. In addition to a four-year sentence, Smith had to pay $100,000, but was allowed to use the seized cash towards the fine.His lawyer, David Martin, said at the time that Smith was single and had spent his entire life as an auto-body repairman.
Project Essen was the first major RCMP operation against the Hells Angels in B.C. and resulted in nine people convicted - four connected to the Vancouver chapter and the other five from the puppet Renegades.
Smith and Krogstad both got early parole in March 2007 due to their good behaviour.
But Smith was banned from associating with members of the biker gang until after the expiry of his warrant on Nov. 6, 2009, according to National Parole Board documents obtained by The Sun."There were no reasonable grounds to believe that, if released, you are likely to commit an offence involving violence before the expiry of your sentence," the parole board said.But board members also said Smith must recognize that his "association with people involved in criminal activity and criminal organizations was a causal factor in your criminal behaviour. You must therefore avoid any person you know or suspect is affiliated with an outlaw motorcycle gang or other organized criminal group."
"This condition is reasonable and necessary to protect society and to facilitate your successful reintegration as a law-abiding citizen," the board said.
The board noted that Smith's criminal record wasn't clear prior to the police sting that resulted in 11 charges against him.
"Though you have a number of convictions dating back to 1975 and 1993 that involved violent behaviour, the board is satisfied that you were a low risk for future violence," the parole documents said.Your affiliations with members of an outlaw motorcycle group and involvement in the drug trade were issues that had the potential of increasing your risk for violence. None of these have been in evidence since your day parole began

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Dounche Jones, 19, is the man police say killed 46-year-old David Babcock while he was riding his bike last week to work.  

David Babcock, 46, was killed last week while he was riding his bike to work.
Police won't go into detail as to what led to Thursday's early morning arrest on July 24. But we know the teen they arrested is charged with murder.
Police say he also has gang ties, which is keeping the Babcock family even more on edge. Dounche Jones, 19, is the man police say killed 46-year-old David Babcock while he was riding his bike last week to work.One of Babcock's relatives said, "Why somebody that young? And why would you do it?""See someone totally innocent lose his life for what? The most he had was a couple of bucks and a bike," says Toledo Police Captain Ray Carroll.
While riding down Western Avenue, police say Babcock was stopped by Jones. "I don't know if he tried to get the bike, or if he tried to get something else," says Captain Carroll, "Mr. Babcock put up a fight, and he was shot."Babcock's relative tells us, "Knowing him, he went down fighting. That's why his last words were **** you."Police say Jones took nothing, even leaving the bike at the scene. Then went into hiding. They say he admitted to being a gang member in that area. Also, he may have not wanted anyone unfamiliar on his turf. Babcock's relative says, "The question I have for everybody... what is a gang? What are you representing? All you're doing is causing trouble for the neighborhood. Why can't everyone live in peace.?A week later, police picked up Jones on the same street. They say he was drinking underage. After questioning him, they arrested him for Babcock's murder.
Now the slain man's family members are keeping their identities hidden for protection. However, they do plan to show up to court and follow Jones' case through.
Babcock's family member tells us, "We want to make sure this person gets what they deserve. For somebody to do that, he knew what he was about to do."

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Chad Wilson and John Midmore have been moved to the Minnehaha County Jail  

We have learned that the two members of the Hells Angels who are accused of sparking a gun fight in 2006 have been moved to the Minnehaha County Jail.Chad Wilson and John Midmore are charged with attempted murder, conspiracy and weapons violations in their role in a shooting that injured six members of a rival motorcycle gang.

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San Jose on pace to surpass last year's spike in homicides. Of the city's 36 homicide victims last year, 16 were gang slayings.  

19-year-old man Thursday became San Jose's 20th homicide this year in what appeared to be a gang-related fight, police said.The teenager was walking with a group of about four or five other male teens near the intersection of Kammerer and Oakland avenues when he was stabbed at about 8 p.m., said San Jose police officer Enrique Garcia.At the time, several suspected gang members approached the group and a fight broke out, Garcia said, with one of the teens pulling out a knife and stabbing the victim several times.The victim was taken to a hospital, where he died a few hours later. His identity was not released. No suspect is in custody.
Thursday's killing puts the city on pace to surpass last year's spike in homicides. Of the city's 36 homicide victims last year, 16 were gang slayings.
To help stem the violence, the San Jose City Council approved a budget plan that beefs up its 1,370-member force by 25 officers next year and 100 by 2012.

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Fresh Off the Boat and Fresh Off the Boat Killers ,Calgary is in the midst of a bloody gang war  

Calgary is in the midst of a bloody gang war, the city's top cop said he fears an innocent will wind up caught in the crossfire.
"I would absolutely expect more shootings," Rick Hanson said yesterday, a day after a man survived a brazen execution-style shooting on a busy downtown street to become the latest chapter in a violent struggle between two rival gangs. "That's always our concern, that an innocent person is going to get shot -- it's happened in other jurisdictions, it can happen here." Hanson confirmed the man in his 20s, shot in the Beltline by several masked gunman in the middle of the afternoon Monday, was an associate of slain gangster Roger Chin. This incident is the latest sortie in a war between two groups -- Fresh Off the Boat and Fresh Off the Boat Killers -- that, since 2001, has left a dozen dead and many others wounded. The man, listed in serious but stable condition last night, had been under surveillance by the gang unit and was out on bail for a June 24, 2007, assault in Banff. Acting Staff Sgt. Martin Schiavetta of the gang unit said the two groups have been engaged in a bloody conflict, which has little prospect of abating until one side or the other is wiped out. "There are numerous acts of violence between both these groups and, of course, every one of these shootings occurs in a public place, which obviously concerns us greatly," he said. "After every act of gang violence we expect a retaliation to occur -- the dispute that they're engaged in has to do with a lot of interpersonal disputes and hatred which is very difficult for police to stop." In the weeks following Chin's slaying, police stepped up efforts to monitor gang members, ensuring they abide by curfews and court-ordered conditions, and then showed up en masse at his funeral last weekend to try to thwart more bloodshed.
"We are not going to be anything less than vigilant. We are not going to ease up," Hanson said. "Do we worry about an innocent person being killed? Absolutely we do and there isn't a police officer you talk to who wouldn't express that concern and that's why we're doing everything we can."
Calgary has 12 active gangs and some 400 members vying to compete in the burgeoning cocaine trade, leading to confrontations in some very public locations.

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Hundreds of members of the notorious biker gang are gathering at the Hells Angels clubhouse in Langley, B.C., this weekend  

Hundreds of members of the notorious biker gang are gathering at the Hells Angels clubhouse in Langley, B.C., this weekend to mark the anniversary of the chapters in Vancouver, Nanaimo and White Rock.The Hells Angels are celebrating their 25th anniversary in parts of B.C., and an expert in biker gangs says they're still at the top of the criminal pack.The B.C. Lower Mainland has recently seen a wave of gang violence that has left dozens dead, but author Yves Lavigne says those killings have largely involved fledgling Asian street gangs.Lavigne, who's written several books on the Hells Angels, says newer gangs are far more violent than an established group like the Angels, who prefer bribes and intimidation over guns to solve their problems.But just because the Hells Angels have a lower profile, Lavigne says the public shouldn't think the bikers aren't a menace.He says the group has learned to keep its activities under the public radar and learn from their mistakes, allowing them to evade the law and maintain their power.

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Members of the Gangster Disciples arrested Friday in early-morning raids  

Seventeen drug-dealing suspects believed to be members of the Gangster Disciples street gang were arrested Friday in early-morning raids in Maywood.
The arrests followed a five-month undercover investigation—dubbed Operation Summer Heat—that involved undercover officers using surveillance technology to nab the suspects, who sold cocaine and heroin, police said.Several state and federal law-enforcement agencies assisted the Maywood Police Department with arrests and preliminary operations, including the U.S. Marshals Service, Illinois State Police, the Cook County sheriff's gang unit, the Cook County state's attorney's office and the Hillside and Broadview Police Departments.Maywood Police Sgt. Tim Curry said the suspects will face a range of charges, including delivery of a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school or church. Police have not yet released their names.
Police said most of the suspects will appear in Bond Court on Saturday and Monday.

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Lucia Riina, the daughter of notorious Sicilian mob Salvatore "Toto" Riina, married Vincenzo Bellomo  



Lucia Riina, the daughter of notorious Sicilian mob Salvatore "Toto" Riina, married Vincenzo Bellomo on Wednesday in the Italian town of Corleone.
Riina, 28, married Bellomo, a 34-year-old salesman, in a publicized wedding in Corleone's Immaculata church in front of 100 invited guests and journalists.Riina was given away by her brother, Giuseppe, as her father, the Mafia's former "boss of bosses", sat in prison. Giuseppe, 30, was released from jail in February after serving time for Mafia crimes.
Brother Giovanni and uncle Leoluca Bagarella, also Mafia bosses, missed the wedding because they are incarcerated. Giovanni is serving two life sentences for murder and their father has been in jail since 1993."Our thoughts go to those who could not be here,” the groom, Vincenzo Bellomo, told the guests, according to reports in Italian newspapers.
Lucia's mother, Ninetta Bagarella, who is also the sister of Leoluca Bagarella, wore black and carried her daughter's veil.Riina is currently service 12 life sentences for crimes that include the 1992 murders of anti-Mafia magistrates Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino. In May, the Italy Supreme Court ruled Riina, 78, must remain in a high-security prison because he is too dangerous.Riina is described as the real "Godfather" as he was a powerful Mafia boss who was raised in Corleone, similar to the epic movie's main character Vito Corleone, who was played by Marlon Brando. Riina became the boss of the Corleonesi in 1974 and ran the family during the Second Mafia War, which took place from 1981 until his arrest in 1993. During his reign, the Corleonesi became the most powerful family in Sicily's Cosa Nostra.

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