Mr Bowes, 68, was set upon as he tried to stamp out a fire.
He suffered serious head injuries and died just before midnight last night, Scotland Yard said.
His next of kin have been informed and a post mortem examination will be held soon.
Detective Chief Inspector John McFarlane, of the Met's Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said: "This was a brutal incident that resulted in the senseless killing of an innocent man.

"I still need the assistance of the community who may have witnessed the attack to come forward and provide information or images they may have recorded on mobile devices.
"This information could be crucial in catching his killer."
Jim, the owner of Big Jim's Trims in Ealing, said rioters attacked Mr Bowes when he tried to put out a fire they had started in a supermarket bin near the Arcadia shopping centre.

Riots And The Aftermath
After violence spread across the country, Sky News tells the story in pictures and video
Jim, 40, who has two hairdressing shops, on The Green and in Devonshire Road, said: "I went up to Spring Bridge Road to check on my other shop and saw him on the ground.
"The rioters had set a bin alight and then they jumped on him when he tried to put it out."
Scotland Yard said officers were in the area dealing with violent disorder when they became aware of Mr Bowes being attacked.
They managed to reach him to administer first aid despite missiles being rained at them, the Met added.

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The thugs, many who were armed with sticks, wore ski masks and hoods to cover their faces as they smashed up shops and set fire to a Miss Selfridge shop on Market Street.

The youths then ran down the street smashing the windows on another clothes store, while dozens tried to force the door of the Arndale shopping centre.

Among the marchers were children on pedal cycles.

Mohammed Shafique of the Ramadan Foundation said he had seen running battles between police and young people in Manchester since about 6pm. He estimates there are about 2,000 people on the streets around the Arndale Centre.

Nearby hundreds of riot police had tried to move crowds who had gathered on Piccadilly Gardens, leading to running battles with youngsters wearing masks and hoods.

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alleged street gang member who was twice turned down for parole because he was deemed too high a risk of reoffending has now been freed from prison.

Anaiah (Knox) Farray, 27, was arrested in a police sweep in October 2007. He was believed to be carrying a loaded firearm and seeking revenge after his brother was shot four times during a conflict over drug trafficking turf in west-end Montreal.

Farray's brother and another young person were wounded in two separate incidents during Thanksgiving weekend 2007.

The shootings sparked a special investigation, with police searching apartments on Grand Blvd. in Notre Dame de Grâce and seizing 600 rocks of crack, cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy pills, $6,500 cash and a loaded handgun linked to Farray.

Months after his arrest, Farray pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to traffic and possession of a prohibited and loaded firearm.

On Nov. 24, 2008, the alleged member of a Bloods or Red-affiliated street gang was sentenced to a fouryear prison term.

After that, Farray was twice turned down for parole because the National parole board considered him too high a risk of reoffending.

In 2009, he was found to have made little effort toward rehabilitation. A written summary of the parole board decision stated: "Several police sources confirm that you and your brother were trying to control the drug trade in the area and were seeking revenge after your brother was shot four times."

In March 2011, Farray was denied release again after he was suspended from a school at his penitentiary, and he was still considered a risk of reoffending.

However, during that parole hearing, Farray's case management team noted progress and informed the board that Farray's sentence appeared to "have had a serious impact on (Farray) and a deterrent effect."

Because he was denied any form of release, Farray automatically qualified under federal law for a release after the two-thirds mark of his sentence, which was set at July 26.

The National Parole imposed a condition on his release prohibiting him from associating with anyone who has a criminal record or is involved with street gangs.

 

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Armed robber Robert Freeman (27) of Deansrath, Clondalkin, learnt yesterday that he will not serve extra jail time for the attack on Brian Murphy on July 21, 2009.

Dublin Circuit Court heard gardai believed there was an on-going dispute between the two men over drugs in the Clondalkin area.

The Herald can reveal that Murphy was a close pal of jailed crime lord Karl Breen at the time.

Tensions

Freeman's mob have been feuding with Breen's so-called Infamous D22 gang for years and the machete attack sparked a major escalation in tensions in the summer of 2009 which ultimately led to the murder of Breen's enforcer Pierce Reid (24), who was shot dead outside his home just a few weeks later.

The background to the machete attack was outlined in court when a garda explained that Murphy had risen in the early hours to collect his wife from the airport.

At around 2am he heard a noise and went outside to find shots had been fired at his house.

Gardai arrived but when they asked Murphy about it he told them it was "none of their business" and that he was going to take care of it himself.

Murphy then left his home and passed by Freeman who was standing in his own front garden.

The two started arguing and pushing each other before Freeman went back in his house and closed the door. He emerged a short time later with a machete and struck Murphy four times on the head and body. Gardai saw the attack but were too far away to stop it.

Gardai agreed that after Freeman re-entered his house, the victim's son came running through the gardens 'like a madman' and embedded a knife in his front door.

The victim was brought to hospital and later made a full recovery. Freeman was arrested and claimed he acted in self-defence because Mr Murphy was being aggressive towards him. Freeman has been a major target for gardai for years and earlier this month he was given an 11 year jail sentence for his role in the robbery of weapons from a firearms dealer in Co Tipperary.

Yesterday, Judge Patrick McCartan imposed a three year term for the machete assault but ordered it to run concurrently to the on-going sentence.

On January 9, 2009, Freeman and his gang stole 42 rifles, shotguns and handguns, some of which were later sold to one of the feuding drugs gangs operating in Limerick.

In 2002, Freeman was convicted of being involved in an armed bank robbery in Co Tipperary.

Kidnapping

He is a close associate of two brothers from the Clondalkin area who remain in garda custody today after a car was blown up in Ballyfermot on Sunday night. These young men are considered "violent and unpredictable" criminals by gardai.

Separately, Freeman's father is veteran armed robber Thomas Freeman (55) who is currently serving a 12-year-sentence for his role in a tiger kidnapping in Co Galway.

His brother Barry Freeman (24) was jailed for six years in 2008 for stabbing another man while another of his brothers, Alan (30), received an eight-year suspended sentence for a bank robbery in Co Laois.

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14-year-old American citizen has been jailed for three years after telling authorities he beheaded four people whose bodies were hung from a bridge.

Edgar Jimenez Lugo, known as 'El Ponchis' (The Cloaked One), was given the maximum sentence allowed for a minor in Morelos, Mexico.

The U.S. teenager worked for the Beltran Leyva brothers' cartel and killed four people whose bodies were hung in Cuernavaca, authorities said.


Jailed: Edgar Jimenez Lugo, of California, known as 'El Ponchis' (The Cloaked One), was given the maximum sentence allowed for a minor in Morelos, Mexico

A judge gave Lugo the maximum sentence for a minor for organised crime, homicide, kidnapping, and drug and weapons possession.

He was born in San Diego, California, and was arrested in December as he tried to board a plane in Cuernavaca to Tijuana with his sisters.

 
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One of his sisters, aged 16, was also allegedly involved in the crime gang.

She apparently disposed of her brother's victims by dumping the bodies on streets and freeways, officials said.

Mexican soldiers presented Edgar 'El Ponchis' Jimenez Lugo to the media in the city of Cuernavaca, Mexico, in December 2010

Another teen sister accompanying them is not suspected of being involved with the cartels.

'I participated in four executions, but I did it drugged and under threat that if I didn't they would kill me'

Edgar Jimenez Lugo


In a video, an interrogator asks: 'How many have you killed,' as Jimenez responds, 'four'. The soldier then asks: 'How did you execute them?’

The boy calmly adds: 'I slit their throats. I participated in four executions, but I did it drugged and under threat that if I didn't they would kill me.'


Explanation: 'El Ponchis' talks to a journalist as he is presented to the media last December shortly after he was arrested

Jimenez and his siblings were living in a poor neighbourhood of Jiutepec, a working-class suburb of Cuernavaca, known as a weekend getaway for Mexico City residents.

The area has an industrial area with Nissan, Unilever and other factories and has rustic single-level concrete homes and some farms.

Many youths are used by drug cartels in their bloody battles against the government and each other, but the story of El Ponchis is shocking.

After he was captured, he said he was kidnapped aged 11 and forced to work for the Cartel of the South Pacific, a branch of the splintered Beltran Leyva gang, and that he had participated in at least four decapitations.

Mexican newspaper La Razon reported last month that El Ponchis was paid $3,000 for each murder he committed.

 

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Senior officers are satisfied the network acted on behalf of several organised crime gangs from Dublin and Limerick, including the McCarthy Dundon outfit, over the past few years.

Last night two suspects were in garda custody after detectives from the national drugs unit seized an estimated €250,000 in cash, having intercepted a lorry in the Blanchardstown area of west Dublin.

Gardai are also actively investigating a link between the money find and the seizure of about 200 kilos of cannabis herb, with a street value of over €2m, in Rathcoole, Co Dublin.

Officers said last night that the loss of the money and the drugs -- which had cost a Dublin trafficking gang around €600,000 -- had dealt substantial financial blows to two crime gangs.

Network

One of those being questioned last night is the suspected leader of the financial network, a 67-year-old businessman, originally from the northside of Dublin but living in Kilmeague, Naas, Co Kildare.

The man is suspected of having had links in the past to the Provisional IRA. He was detained after gardai carried out searches in north Kildare early yesterday. The earlier arrest of a man in his 30s from Blanchardstown came after the money was found in the truck.

Gardai said the seizures followed an intelligence-led operation over several months targeting organised crime gangs and their associates.

Lorries

Detectives believe the network was transporting cash on behalf of the gangs in lorries making legitimate journeys to mainland Europe and the money was then used to pay for shipments of drugs being smuggled here by others.

They are satisfied that millions of euro were taken out of the country to finance deals struck by the gangs over the past few years.

The two men were being held last night at Blanchardstown garda station on suspicion of money laundering.

Meanwhile, other members of the national unit stopped a van in Rathcoole and searched three barrels in the rear of the vehicle. They discovered the 200 kilos of cannabis herb in the barrels.

Gardai last night described the hiding of the shipment as a very clever concealment.

They believe the drugs were destined for sale in the Dublin area.

Officers arrested a man in his 20s from west Dublin and he was taken to Clondalkin station for questioning under the drug trafficking legislation.

"Between the two seizures, the gangs have suffered a financial loss of around €850,000 

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Seven members of the Hells Angels and Throttle Lockers Motor Cycle Clubs and their associates were arrested Tuesday on second degree murder charges in the brutal slaying earlier this month of Kelowna resident Dain Eldon Phillips, 51, who died of injuries after he was savagely beaten near his home.
The seven include Robert Leonard Thomas, 46 and Norman Robert Cocks, 31, both full patch members of Kelowna Hells Angels; Robert Charles Cocks, 52, president of Throttle Lockers, a Hells Angels support club; and four associates Daniel Joseph McRae, 20, Matthew Thomas McRae and Anson Lloyd Schell both 19, and Thomas Allen Vaughan, 22.
The early arrests under Project E-Nightshade were made in a sweep by the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU) of British Columbia, the Kelowna RCMP and the Southeast District Drug Section., were possible as some of the same people were involved in a separate ongoing police investigation code named E-Pixie into gang warfare in Kelowna and Prince George following the attempted murder in September 2010 of a 27-year-old Edmonton resident in downtown Kelowna near Leon Avenue and Abbot Street when his vehicle was riddled with bullets by unknown attackers.
“In recent years, police and citizens alike have seen the troubling trend of gangs and organized crime groups exporting violence from Metro Vancouver into the southeast and northern regions of British Columbia. These individuals show absolute contempt and disregard for society. The gunplay and savage violence on our streets is simply unacceptable,” said CFSEU’s Chief Officer, Supt. Doug Kiloh in a police release.
“When the Province announced a sweeping plan to aggressively target gangs and organised crime in 2009, we wanted to make sure we didn’t just displace gang violence from the Lower Mainland. It was about going after gangs wherever they set up shop in B.C.,” said Solicitor General Shirley Bond. “That is why we expanded the CFSEU units to Kelowna and Prince George and this is further proof that these integrated units are working hard to make our communities safer for B.C. families.”
“The arrests of these members of the Hells Angels or any other criminal group show that we will aggressively pursue any individuals who use violence or threats to protect or to expand their criminal enterprises anywhere in British Columbia,” said Supt Pat Fogarty head of CFSEU’s organised crime section.

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Members of the gang violence task force along with major-crimes detectives in Kelowna helped in the investigation.

Phillips, 51, died in hospital following a fight between two groups June 12 near McCurdy and Gibson Roads.

Charges have been laid against Robert Leonard Thomas, 45, Norman Robert Cocks, 31, Robert Charles Cocks, 53, David Joseph McRae, 21, Matthew Thomas Mcrae, 19, Anson Lloyd Schell, 19, and Thomas Allen Vaughan, 22.

It's believed Phillips was intervening in an on-going dispute between his sons and two brothers they had known in high school.

Phillips was fatally beaten with hammers and baseball bats.

Norman Cocks and Robert Thomas are the first patch-wearing Hells Angels to be accused of murder in the 28-year history of the biker gang in BC.

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Two city homes were shot at within the last two days and CTV News has learned this may be the result of rising tensions between rival Winnipeg gangs.

A house on Stranmillis Avenue was shot at just before 4 a.m. Wednesday morning. Moments later, the couple sleeping inside say they noticed smoke pouring from the basement. Their son lives there, but he wasn't home.

CTV News has learned their son is the current president of the Rock Machine gang and was the intended target.

Just a day before, another home with alleged ties to the Rock Machine was shot at on Canberra Road.

"The incidents look similar in nature. Our organized crime unit is investigating both but at this time they are being investigated as separate," said Const. Natalie Aitken of the Winnipeg Police Service.

In February 2010, CTV News first reported of a feud brewing between the Hells Angels, their affiliates, the Redlined Support Crew and the Rock Machine.

In a search warrant, one veteran officer stated tensions were high and violence imminent. This came after a member of the Rock Machine was lured to a business on St. Mary's Road then beaten with a stool by Redlined members.

Police seized a loaded 9mm handgun from a Redlined member's home on Mighton Avenue in Elmwood. They were apparently keeping the gun handy in case of a surprise attack.

The news has left those living on Stranmillis Avenue unsettled. Some residents are concerned this could be the beginning of a summer plagued by gang violence.

The Hells Angels and the Rock Machine have clashed in the past. In the mid 90s in Quebec, 150 people were killed in a biker war, one that didn't end until a truce was called.

Police wouldn't comment on a motive for either shooting. No arrests have been made.

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Luis Alberto Martinez Ventura was escorted home on May 24 following an immigration hearing, nearly nine years after first stepping foot on North American soil posing as a Mexican national.
 
His removal was hailed by Canada Border Services Agency officials who announced his deportation in a statement released on Friday.
 
“The CBSA places the highest priority on removal cases involving national security, organized crime, crimes against humanity and criminals,” wrote spokeswoman Lisa White.
 
Immigration officials said Ventura entered Canada in August 2008 using a Mexican passport and electoral card and was granted approval to visit until January, 2009.
 
Those officials didn’t catch up with Ventura until January when Calgary police arrested him on unrelated matters.
 
According to a transcript of the hearing, Ventura confessed at that time that he’d been living under a bogus name since 2002 when he first entered the U.S.
 
Intelligence gleaned by immigration officials indicated Ventura sported a history with the notorious Mara Salvatrucha — also known as MS-13 — a violent gang founded by Salvadoran immigrants in Los Angeles during the 1980s.
 
The gang, the influence of which has spread across the Americas and counts between 30,000 and 50,000 members and associates among its ranks, has found itself behind several high-profile U.S. murders and drug cases in recent years.
 
While immigration officials couldn’t prove he was a member, an investigation found the man “had engaged in activity with that group that was part of a pattern of criminal activity,” board member Lynda Mackie said in the ruling, which
 
ordered he remain locked up until deportation.
 
“You have demonstrated in the past that your are adept at obtaining and using fraudulent identity documents and that you can live successfully underground undetected for a considerable period of time,” she said.
 
Ventura is permanently barred from returning to Canada.

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Mercer County Sheriff’s officers tracking a fugitive gang member wanted in the city on weapons offenses followed his trail to Willingboro, Burlington County, where they arrested their man and three other people, while also happening upon a loaded weapon, drugs and funny money.

The hunt began April 6, when sheriff’s officers spotted a suspect on Kirkbride Avenue in Trenton with what appeared to be a gun.

When officers went to investigate, the suspect, later identified as James Hughes, ran in through the front of a home on Kirkbride, then ran out the back door, officials said.

The suspect managed to get away, officials said, but during the chase the officers reported seeing him discard a gun. The loaded .40-caliber Taurus handgun was recovered with a defaced serial number.

Officials said detectives managed to identify the 26-year-old Hughes, and warrants for weapons offenses and other charges were issued. Officials called him a “documented member of the Bloods Street gang.”

As they searched for Hughes, officials said, detectives received information that the fugitive may be hiding out at a girlfriend’s house on Granby Lane in Willingboro. Officials identified the girlfriend as 29-year-old Monet Muse.

Officers went to the Granby Lane home Thursday, but Hughes wasn’t there. They did find Muse, another woman named Kyla Muse, 28, who also lived at the home, and her boyfriend, 31-year-old Sultan Freeman, of Camden.

During their investigation, officials said, detectives recovered 57 grams of marijuana, $980 worth of counterfeit $20 bills, and what turned out to be a stolen .357 Magnum revolver, fully loaded with hollow-point bullets. A check of the gun showed it was reported stolen from Burlington in 2009.

Officials said Monet Muse was charged only with possession of marijuana, and she was released on her own recognizance.

Freeman and Kyla Muse are facing multiple charges in connection with gun possession and the counterfeit cash. Freeman was additionally charged as a previously convicted felon in possession of a weapon.

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Four teenagers are in custody in connection with the slaying of a 21-year-old man in San Rafael that investigators believe was the result of a dispute between rival gangs, a police spokeswoman said Thursday.

Carlos Guiterrez, 18, of San Rafael, a student at Madrone High School, and three boys - a 16-year-old and two 17-year-olds - were arrested on suspicion of murder with gang enhancements in the stabbing death Wednesday of 21-year-old Jeffrie Lee Olmstead, police spokeswoman Margo Rohrbacher said.

One of the 17-year-olds attends Novato High School, and the other two juveniles are students at County Community School in San Rafael, Rohrbacher said. All four suspects are gang members, she said.

The names of the juveniles have not been released.

The incident began when police received reports of "young men armed with sticks and bats" running on the 600 block of B Street near the San Rafael Community Center at 4:53 p.m., Rohrbacher said.

More callers reported that they saw a Pontiac Grand Am chasing a Ford Explorer in the Gerstle Park neighborhood, Rohrbacher said. The two vehicles ended up on Woods Street, where the occupants of both cars jumped out and began fighting, she said.

Three occupants of the Ford, including Olmstead, were stabbed, police said.

A resident called 911 and said a bleeding man, later identified as Olmstead, had come to her door and asked for help before collapsing, police said.

Olmstead was taken to Marin General Hospital, where he died. Police later learned that he had told his friends to leave him, Rohrbacher said.

The two other stabbing victims from the Ford were dropped off at the emergency room. The men, ages 20 and 21, were treated for minor injuries and released.

California Highway Patrol officers found the Ford Explorer with a smashed windshield in Corte Madera at 5:17 p.m. and stopped it on Tamal Vista Boulevard. The driver was detained and the vehicle impounded.

The Pontiac was found unoccupied on Front Street in San Rafael shortly after midnight, Rohrbacher said.

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Newport News gang member was convicted by a federal jury of murdering two people as part of his activities with the violent street gangs operating in the city.

Perry Cousins was a leader of a violent gang who spread "fear and havoc" throughout Newport News, U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride said.

According to evidence introduced at trial, Cousins was a member of an enterprise that consisted of three gangs, the "Slump Mobb," the "Dump Squad," and "Bang Gang," all criminal organizations that operated in the Ridley Circle, Harbor Homes and Dickerson Court areas of Newport News.

"The gang was so brazen they firebombed a police station in an attempt to intimidate both law enforcement and the surrounding community," MacBride said.

Cousins was charged and convicted of the murders of Rashed Caudle on Aug. 9, 2003, Lorenzo Thomas on Sept. 12, 2005, and the pistol-whipping of a third person.

Several co-defendants previously pled guilty to violent criminal acts associated with their participation in gang activity.

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the Tenth Street Gang and the Seventh Street Gang — have waged a bloody war on Buffalo’s West Side for years, police say.

Over the past three years, one violent retribution attack has followed another, causing grief for many families and making people afraid to walk the streets in some neighborhoods.

Thursday, cops and federal prosecutors attempted to put a stop to the violence by filing criminal charges against 35 alleged members and associates of the two gangs.

The charges were announced by U. S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. and leaders of the FBI, State Police, Buffalo Police and other law enforcement agencies.

“These are exactly the type of people we need to take off the streets to make neighborhoods safe again,” said Richard

W. Kollmar, special agent in charge of the Buffalo FBI office.

“Countless homicides, countless shootings — they have terrorized entire neighborhoods on the West Side,” said Buffalo Police Commissioner Daniel Derenda, who said he believes the arrests will make some neighborhoods safer.

Hochul said the individuals charged include six alleged members of the Seventh Street Gang and 29 associated with Tenth Street, which has been the dominant gang on the West Side for more than 20 years.

Crimes alleged include four murders, 10 attempted murders, numerous assaults and scores of drug deals, prosecutors said in court papers. Most of the alleged Tenth Street associates who were charged on Thursday had been previously charged with related crimes in an indictment last September.

Identified as members of the Seventh Street Gang — also known as Checko’s Crew — are: Efrain “Checko” Hidalgo, Thomas Rodriguez, Kasiem Williams, Esteban “Rudolfo” Ramos-Cruz, Jordan Hidalgo and Juan “Puchongo” Torres.

Efrain Hidalgo, Williams, Ramos-Cruz and Torres are accused of taking part in the August 11, 2009, murder of Eric Morrow, a member of the rival Tenth Street Gang.

Buffalo police said Morrow, 21, of Kamper Street, was shot in the chest and leg while standing next to the porch of a home on Auburn Avenue near West Avenue. Thirteen days after that shooting, the indictment charges that Williams tried to murder Saul Santana, a member of the Tenth Street Gang.

Police charged that Santana had shot and killed Anthony “Act” Colon, a 20-yearold Seventh Street gangster, while Colon was walking on Ullman Avenue on July 26, 2009.

The 29 defendants accused of racketeering crimes in the Tenth Street case are: Santana, Kyle “Bow-Wow” Eagan, Tony Peebles, Cody Busch, Matthew Deynes, David Deynes, Nourooz Ali, Efrain Barreto, Charles “Pingy” Watkins, Desmond Ford, Jimmarlan Sessions, Omar Hernandez, Justin Augus, Melvin Medina, Miguel Moscoso, Hector Rodriguez, Jimmy Sessions, Derrick Yancey, Johnathan Serrano, Michael Bobbitt, Brandon Bobbitt, Renal Velasquez, Daniel Colon, Douglas Harville, Jairo Hernandez, Matthew “Matt Nasty” Smith, Chazity Fluellen, Michael Hernandez and Benjamin Medina.

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According to an official notice of rejection from the ABC Commission, members of the Bloods and the Crips street gangs were inside Club 609 on the night Tremayne Blanks was shot to death. It goes on to say that when a song by Taaron Jones was played, gang members began flashing gang-related hand symbols. Jones was stabbed to death in January outside of the Rhino Club, another Wilmington night club. Police say he was the highest-ranking member of the ii street gang. After the song was played fights broke out between rival gang members inside the club. Blanks was killed outside the club.

The ABC Commission says the owners of Club 609, at 4418 Market Street, may appeal the action to the Office of Administrative Hearings within 60 days.

"A history of fighting, disorderly conduct, or other dangerous activity is part of what the Commission considers in deciding if an ABC permit is detrimental to the community. Law enforcement has documented that history at Club 609, and the Commission is taking back the temporary permits and denying the application for permanent permits. The fatal shooting this weekend is a terrible reminder that serving alcohol is too often a magnet for people inclined to dangerous and even violent acts," said NC ABC Commission Chairman Jon Williams in a statement.

In affidavits from investigators that are part of the Commission's rejection notice, one officer said the club has "maintained a general reputation as a place" for underage drinking, fights and assaults. Another said he had seen a gang member at Club 609 wearing a shirt "showing allegiance" to the slain Jones.

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Innocent people could have been killed when two gunmen sprayed two Adelaide homes with bullets as they targeted a rival gang member, police say.

At least 20 shots were fired at the homes by the gunmen who walked down the suburban Craigmore Street on Wednesday night and opened fire.

Crime gangs task force boss Detective Superintendent Des Bray said the gunmen were thought to have targeted a man who was well known to police and was associated with the New Boys street gang and the Comancheros bikie gang.

The man was currently before the court facing serious charges.

But Supt Bray said it appeared the gunmen weren't sure which home the man was in so fired at both homes, including one owned by people who had nothing to do with the gang warfare.

He said it was fortunate no one was hurt in the attack.

"It appears they've targeted one house, fired a large volley of shots into that house and then they've turned their attention to the other home," Supt Bray told reporters on Thursday.

"Basically the behaviour of these people, it's just very, very cowardly.

"We've got two people in the still of night, slink down the street and basically open up firing on a house in the middle of the night and then run away like cowards.

"They have no regard for whether the people are their target or somebody else," he said.

"Innocent people could have lost their lives."

Supt Bray said police were still investigating the motives for the attack with a number of people associated with different gangs having issues with the man thought to have been the target.

"There's probably several motives and several reasons as to why someone would target that person," he said.

"As to which person is targeting him and for which reason, that will take a little bit longer for us to find out."

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Three men have been charged in connection to a sexual assault in Prince George on March 24.

Adam Andrew Boyd, 21, and Julian Niskakoski, 19, both from Coquitlam, have been charged with several counts related to sexual assault after police began an investigation and obtained a search warrant for a house known to police as a biker club house in the 1500 block of Fir Street.

Another man, Albert Donald Piche,31, from Prince George, was arrested and charged similarly the next day. Police say Piche is known to be an associate of the Game Tight Soldiers in Prince George, and Boyd is linked to Hells Angels members in the Lower Mainland.

Piche has been remanded in custody. Boyd and Niskakoski are scheduled to appear in court today.

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The Scottish millionaire Paul Ferris, known in central Scotland as a gangster, is reportedly being sued for debt problems in relation to a property he owns.

Ferris, 47, racked up the debt after failing to pay instalments of factor’s fees on his luxurious waterfront property at Mariner’s View in Ayrshire. He was ordered by a court to resolve his debt management issues, and could face action from sheriff officers if he fails to comply and repay the full amount owed plus expenses.

Explaining the situation, a source was quoted saying:

“It’s unlikely such a relatively small sum will come to bankruptcy, although even a court case such as this could affect his credit rating.

“This could pose problems if, for example, he wants to get a mortgage or a loan for a car.

“But Mr Ferris is probably more of a ‘cash payer’ anyway, so that shouldn’t be much of a problem.”

Ferris has not contested that he is liable for the debt, which is believed to exceed £1,000, but has not yet repaid what he owes. The paperwork for Mr Ferris’ case is reported to have been passed to Glasgow sheriff officers.

Ferris is known in Scotland for being the enforcer for Glasgow “Godfather” Arthur Thompson; ironically, his first undertaking for Thompson was as a debt collector. He has served numerous jail sentences, his latest ending in 2002. At this time, he announced he was quitting his life of crime.

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Medina County jury today convicted a member of the Hells Angels on felony charges related to a fight Sept. 3 in Montville Township.
Jurors in Medina County Common Pleas Court found Scott Stage, 46, of Parma guilty of felonious assault in the beating of Steven Keresztesi, a 63-year-old from Cleveland who was seeking to re-establish the Coffin Cheaters, bikers who had been in Northeast Ohio for decades.
The same jury Friday acquitted Justin Seliskar of Medina of three assault charges related to the same beating. But the panel wanted more time to consider the case against Stage.
The verdicts came after a weeklong trial before Judge James Kimbler. Kimbler will sentence Stage on April 28.

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Rebels WA president Nick Martin was in high spirits yesterday despite Friday night's attempt on his life in what may have been the latest tit-for-tat exchange between his outlaw motorcycle club and fledgling rivals Rock Machine.

Sporting a small bandage on his heavily tattooed left arm, Mr Martin said police had seized security camera footage of the shooting, which happened about 8.30pm as he pulled his Harley-Davidson motorcycle into his Attra Street property in Balcatta.

Mr Martin, who has previously said he believed hostilities were about "honour and integrity" rather for control of the drug trade as police consistently claim, said the injury was minor.

He had surgery on Saturday to remove shrapnel from his left elbow but is not expecting any long-term damage.

"Better luck next time," Mr Martin said, pointing to a bullet mark on the fuel tank of his motorcycle.

Despite Mr Martin's jovial mood and the minor damage caused by the shooting, Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan said the incident would lead to increased police activity against feuding bikie gangs.

"We have a lot more work to do on both the Rebels and Rock Machine in the next few weeks and you will see some elevated police action," he said. "There is potentially an escalating war, we're on top of it.

"We know a lot about it, we have a lot of intelligence and we are responding. You have seen us putting significant heat on bikies in recent times and you can expect to see some more coming shortly."

Mr O'Callaghan said that "heat" had recently included the use of anti-fortification laws and raids across WA. Police also used the Corruption and Crime Commission's powers to compel rival Coffin Cheaters and Finks bikies in a bid to answer questions over a bloody clash at a public event at Perth Motorplex in which one Fink was shot and another had three fingers severed. When five Finks refused to answer CCC questions, they were charged with contempt and later jailed for at least two years.

Attorney-General Christian Porter said proposed anti-bikie laws were "85 per cent complete".

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