(This
column was published in the North
Shore News on
Feb. 14, 2001)
Angels spread their wings
By Leo Knight
A
year or so ago, I was in Montreal doing some research into an
organized crime story for another publication.
In
the course of speaking with some police officers tasked with
investigating the ramifications of the war between the Hells
Angels and the Rock Machine, I was told the Angels had become so
powerful that they dealt manno a manno with the long-established
Italian Mafia families.
It
couldn't be, could it? Had the Angels become that powerful or
had the "men of respect" become so much less a factor?
The
concept of the beer-bellied bullies being invited to the
linguini-laden tables of the pinky rings toppled my gyros.
But,
in fact, such is now the case. In Vancouver, for example, the
six chapters of the Hells Angels have become the richest in the
world of outlaw motorcycle gangs. They no longer send
representatives to the so-called West Coast Officers Association
meetings. They don't have to. They run things.
But
in looking at the structure of the East End, Vancouver, and
Nomad chapters, we see they are inextricably tied to the local
representatives of the Eastern Italian families.
But
it is the consolidation of their power and the striking of new
alliances, which make the bikers even more dangerous.
In
the six years of the war for control of the drug trade in
Quebec, 160 people have lost their lives including an
11-year-old boy. A further 173 people have been wounded in the
shootings, bombings and beatings.
Now
it seems the Hells Angels are at least as powerful as the
Italian Mafia, if not more so. In a Toronto Sun story
last weekend, a police officer from their organized crime unit
was quoted on the subject. "In the past," he said,
holding his hands in front of him, "the Italians were up
here, and the bikers there.
"The
tables have turned in the last 10 years, either the Angels are
above or even," he said, realigning his hands. "The
other groups are secret. The H.A.s? What are they fearing? They
hide in plain sight."
The
Angels get their money and power from controlling the grow ops
currently numbering in the thousands across the Lower Mainland.
And no, they won't go away if we decriminalize or legalize
marijuana despite what is being argued by many.
Oh
no, the Angels manufacture and distribute methamphetamine. They
run vast cocaine networks. They control strippers, prostitutes,
Internet porn and gambling. They engage in extortion, stock
market rip-offs, counterfeiting satellite smart cards and a host
of other things. In short, anything they can make money at that
their organizational structure and intimidation tactics enhance.
And
now they have become more powerful than the "mob."
*
* *
It's
heartening to see the conviction last week in B.C. Supreme
Court, of George Kerster, the former Socred MLA who had tried to
purchase the sexual services of an 11-year-old girl.
Kerster
was caught in the web of Vancouver Detective Bruce Headridge's
net. Headridge, currently seconded to the Organized Crime Agency
of B.C., posed as the parent of an 11-year-old girl. The cops
popped Kerster on his way to the hotel where he thought his
illicit pleasures awaited.
He
tried to say that he could not be convicted because the girl was
fictitious.
Not
so, said Madame Justice Kathryn Neilson. She found Kerster's
intent and actions were sufficient for conviction. He will be
sentenced on May 7.
The
decision will allow police to lurk in the chat rooms, trolling
for these perverts and pedophiles without actually involving a
real child. After the trial, Headridge said, '"It means
that I can actively go out now and I've got a mechanism to go
after individuals that would prey on children."
But
this doesn't solve all the problems facing police. "This is
just one little area of the big problem," cautioned the
detective.
In
fact there are a number of problems facing the police. And, as
usual, government inaction is a big factor.
In
1997 Headridge gave a presentation to the Solicitor General on
the subject of child exploitation by pedophiles. Needless to say
very little has been done since.
One
of the big issues for police is the lack of regulation on the
Internet. Pedophiles use anonymous re-mailers and header masks
to keep their identities secret. Now, the Internet itself is a
vast modern-day version of the Wild, Wild West. Any type of site
or content regulation is very difficult to enforce.
But,
it is not difficult to enforce Internet Service Providers to
maintain logs of traffic and make them available for inspection.
It's not spying on what people are looking at, it is merely
keeping traffic logs and making them available to police with a
search warrant. Most of Europe already has such legislation.
Such
legislation would be valuable given that most pedophiles have
embraced the Internet and actively use it, like Kerster did, to
victimize children for their own sick purposes.
Surely our children are worth it.
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