16:14
MOB or Money over Bitches / Members of Bloods Gang in Netherlands is explored by PrimTime - A documentary series in the Netherlands. Los Angeles
Monday, 30 November 2009
MOB or Money over Bitches / Members of Bloods Gang in Netherlands is explored by PrimTime - A documentary series in the Netherlands. Los Angeles
MOB or Money over Bitches / Members of Bloods Gang in Netherlands is explored by PrimTime - A documentary series in the Netherlands. Los Angeles
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
notorious Malvern Crew street gang.Alton Reid, vicious war between the Malvern Crew and the Galloway Boys.
Toronto's 54th homicide victim has been identified as someone who had belonged to the notorious Malvern Crew street gang.Alton Reid, 35, had been attending a birthday party at the Atlanta banquet hall on 1240 Ellesmere Rd. in Scarborough on the weekend when someone walked in and started shooting sometime after 3 a.m. on Sunday.
Four people were found wounded at the scene, and Reid showed up later at hospital. He died of his injuries on Monday.Reid's autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
He had been arrested in 2004 as part of Project Impact, a police crackdown on the gang following a vicious war between the Malvern Crew and the Galloway Boys.
Police charged Reid with a number of offences:
•aggravated assault
•discharging a firearm
•participating in a criminal organization
•related conspiracy charges
Project Pathfinder targeted the Galloway Boys.
Three Galloway Boys were found guilty in the March 3, 2004 murder of one men in Malvern. The court heard the trio were allegedly looking for Reid.
Instead, they shot and killed Brenton Charlton and gravely wounded Leonard Bell as the two men sat stopped in their car at a light.Tyshan Riley, Philip Atkins and Jason Wisdom got life sentences for the attempted murder of Bell and a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years after being convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Charlton.
Four people were found wounded at the scene, and Reid showed up later at hospital. He died of his injuries on Monday.Reid's autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
He had been arrested in 2004 as part of Project Impact, a police crackdown on the gang following a vicious war between the Malvern Crew and the Galloway Boys.
Police charged Reid with a number of offences:
•aggravated assault
•discharging a firearm
•participating in a criminal organization
•related conspiracy charges
Project Pathfinder targeted the Galloway Boys.
Three Galloway Boys were found guilty in the March 3, 2004 murder of one men in Malvern. The court heard the trio were allegedly looking for Reid.
Instead, they shot and killed Brenton Charlton and gravely wounded Leonard Bell as the two men sat stopped in their car at a light.Tyshan Riley, Philip Atkins and Jason Wisdom got life sentences for the attempted murder of Bell and a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years after being convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Charlton.
Philippine National Police detained a provincial chief and three officers on suspicion they may have been involved in abduction and killings
Philippine National Police detained a provincial chief and three officers on suspicion they may have been involved in the abduction and killing of dozens of supporters of a politician and the reporters covering him. The Maguindanao province police chief, Abusana Maguid, and the officers were relieved of their duties pending an investigation, National Police spokesman Leonardo Espina said in a mobile phone text message late yesterday. Maguid may bear “command responsibility” for his officers’ actions, Espina said. The officers were seen by witnesses at the location of the Nov. 23 violence on Mindanao island, he said.“This is just the beginning,” Espina said. “We will not stop. All who are responsible will be made accountable. There will be no sacred cows.” President Gloria Arroyo yesterday put Maguindanao and neighboring Sultan Kudarat province under a state of emergency as the excavation of newly dug mass graves revealed more bodies. The killings represent the worst single incident of election- related violence in the nation’s history, according to the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.
The military said about 100 gunmen stopped a convoy of people on their way to file Buluan City Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu’s application to run for provincial governor. Mangudadatu, who wasn’t in the convoy, told local media his wife was among those whose bodies were identified and that some of the women in the group were raped before they were killed.
Rival Families
Jesus Dureza, Arroyo’s adviser on Mindanao affairs, said he has met with the Mangudadatu family and relatives of Maguindanao Governor Andal Ampatuan. The two families, who were once allies, are now political rivals, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said. The Mangudadatus pleaded for justice, Dureza said in a phone interview late yesterday before he was cut off. The adviser, whom Arroyo tasked to form a crisis committee, didn’t reply to calls or text messages seeking more information. The Ampatuans pledged to cooperate with any investigation, he said in a GMA News TV interview. “No effort will be spared to bring justice to the victims and hold the perpetrators accountable,” Arroyo said yesterday. She deployed extra troops and ordered Director General Jesus Versoza, the national police chief, to lead the investigation into the killings. He’s already on Mindanao, Espina said.
Twenty-four bodies were exhumed yesterday, bringing the death toll to 46, Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna, central Mindanao police director, said in a phone interview. Police will continue to dig at the site where the bodies were found, he said. Some 1,000 soldiers have been deployed to search for the suspects and secure Maguindanao’s “exit points,” Romeo Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told reporters in Manila. Arroyo declared a state of emergency to prevent further violence in the region, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said at a briefing in Manila. The last time an area in Mindanao was placed under a state of emergency was March 31, when militants from the Islamist Abu Sayyaf group threatened to behead one of three Red Cross workers who were taken hostage. Declaring a state of emergency gives the president the authority to use the military to quell violence, Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in the same briefing. It may also give the president the legal basis to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, he said. The writ allows courts to require the military or police to present persons they are holding and justify their detention. At least 12 journalists were among those killed, Reporters Without Borders said.
“Never in the history of journalism have the news media suffered such a heavy loss of life in one day,” the Paris-based organization said in a statement, alleging there is a “culture of impunity and violence in the Philippines, especially in Mindanao.” Elections in the Philippines are often marred by bloodshed, with provincial politicians maintaining private militias. About 126 candidates and supporters were killed in the months leading to the 2007 elections and 186 in 2004, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The Southeast Asian nation will choose a new president and thousands of national and local officials in May. The nation’s Commission on Elections will accept filings for candidacies until Dec. 1.
Maguindanao is a “hotspot” for political unrest, Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told ANC television after the first bodies were discovered on Nov. 23.
Mindanao is home to most of the nation’s Muslim minority some of whom have been fighting a separatist war for decades. It’s also home to the al-Qaeda-linked militant group Abu Sayyaf and other groups engaged in kidnapping and other forms of terrorism.
The military said about 100 gunmen stopped a convoy of people on their way to file Buluan City Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu’s application to run for provincial governor. Mangudadatu, who wasn’t in the convoy, told local media his wife was among those whose bodies were identified and that some of the women in the group were raped before they were killed.
Rival Families
Jesus Dureza, Arroyo’s adviser on Mindanao affairs, said he has met with the Mangudadatu family and relatives of Maguindanao Governor Andal Ampatuan. The two families, who were once allies, are now political rivals, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said. The Mangudadatus pleaded for justice, Dureza said in a phone interview late yesterday before he was cut off. The adviser, whom Arroyo tasked to form a crisis committee, didn’t reply to calls or text messages seeking more information. The Ampatuans pledged to cooperate with any investigation, he said in a GMA News TV interview. “No effort will be spared to bring justice to the victims and hold the perpetrators accountable,” Arroyo said yesterday. She deployed extra troops and ordered Director General Jesus Versoza, the national police chief, to lead the investigation into the killings. He’s already on Mindanao, Espina said.
Twenty-four bodies were exhumed yesterday, bringing the death toll to 46, Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna, central Mindanao police director, said in a phone interview. Police will continue to dig at the site where the bodies were found, he said. Some 1,000 soldiers have been deployed to search for the suspects and secure Maguindanao’s “exit points,” Romeo Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told reporters in Manila. Arroyo declared a state of emergency to prevent further violence in the region, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said at a briefing in Manila. The last time an area in Mindanao was placed under a state of emergency was March 31, when militants from the Islamist Abu Sayyaf group threatened to behead one of three Red Cross workers who were taken hostage. Declaring a state of emergency gives the president the authority to use the military to quell violence, Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in the same briefing. It may also give the president the legal basis to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, he said. The writ allows courts to require the military or police to present persons they are holding and justify their detention. At least 12 journalists were among those killed, Reporters Without Borders said.
“Never in the history of journalism have the news media suffered such a heavy loss of life in one day,” the Paris-based organization said in a statement, alleging there is a “culture of impunity and violence in the Philippines, especially in Mindanao.” Elections in the Philippines are often marred by bloodshed, with provincial politicians maintaining private militias. About 126 candidates and supporters were killed in the months leading to the 2007 elections and 186 in 2004, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The Southeast Asian nation will choose a new president and thousands of national and local officials in May. The nation’s Commission on Elections will accept filings for candidacies until Dec. 1.
Maguindanao is a “hotspot” for political unrest, Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told ANC television after the first bodies were discovered on Nov. 23.
Mindanao is home to most of the nation’s Muslim minority some of whom have been fighting a separatist war for decades. It’s also home to the al-Qaeda-linked militant group Abu Sayyaf and other groups engaged in kidnapping and other forms of terrorism.
Bergrin, a former AUSA with the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey, is charged with leading a criminal enterprise that used violence, intimidation,
Bergrin, a former AUSA with the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey, is charged with leading a criminal enterprise that used violence, intimidation, and deceit to generate millions of dollars, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. Among the most eye-catching allegations against him:
You can read a key portion of the indictment here.
Bergrin was first arrested in May. His lawyers have argued in court papers that prosecutors have tied together baseless cases. And they have argued successfully to have Bergrin removed from solitary confinement, where he had been held after his arrest in May. But since a more detailed indictment was filed earlier this month, they have said little publicly.According to an affidavit from an FBI agent, Bergrin came to serve as "house counsel for a number of criminal organizations, including . . . the Latin Kings, the Bloods, and a number of high-level drug-trafficking organizations." And Bergrin had "essentially become one of the criminals he represents," according to Ralph Marra, the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey.His client list has also included Queen Latifah, Lil' Kim, and mobster Angelo Prisco, as well as a U.S. soldier accused of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, who Bergrin represented pro bono. Bergrin also repped the "King of All Pimps," Jason Itzler, who ran the high-end New York escort service, New York Confidential, that proved to be Eliot Spitzer's undoing. (Itzler called Ashley Dupre, "one of the best hookers ever.") Indeed, prosecutors allege that Bergrin took over the management of the company after Itzler was jailed in 2005.A retired Army Reserve major and the son of a New York City police officer, Bergrin, 53, was an Essex County prosecutor who later worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, before starting a criminal defense practice in 1991.But he may have offered his clients more than just legal representation. The Inquirer reports:
Though the indictment includes one murder and one murder conspiracy, investigators contend that witnesses have linked Bergrin to at least three other homicides.
They also say Bergrin routinely bribed witnesses to win cases. And, they contend, when bribery wasn't an option, he resorted to violence."No witness, no case" was the phrase he used repeatedly in his criminal-defense work, authorities say.In addition to the charges related to bribery, witness intimidation, and running the escort service, Bergrin also allegedly used a Newark restaurant, Isabella's, as a front for drug dealing; and formed a real estate company that conducted phony mortgage deals. Bergrin's undoing may have come when he allegedly smuggled a cellphone into a jail so a client could call a Chicago hitman to set up the murder of a witness. Bergrin himself then traveled to Chicago to meet with the hitman, say the Feds.
But the hitman was a cooperating witness. According to prosecutors, he recorded Bergrin saying things like: "Put on a ski mask and make it look like a robbery. . . . It cannot under any circumstances look like a hit . . . make it look like a home-invasion robbery."The hitman also recorded a conversation in which he told another lawyer, working with Bergrin, that Bergrin wanted to personally take part in the hit.
"He said he wants to do it with me," the hitman said "I said, 'No, Paul. For what you went to law school to become . . . stick with that s-.' Let me do what I have to do.' "Replied the other lawyer: "Paul's a stone killer, bro. . . . That's what he is. . . . He's done work [meaning, committed murder], bro." One underworld source, a former Bergrin client, told the Inquirer that Bergrin "enjoyed life on the edge." Sounds like he may have enjoyed it just a little too much.
- That he used a Newark restaurant as a front for a cocaine-distribution network.
- That he oversaw a $1,000-an-hour call-girl ring in New York City.
- That he had a witness killed in one drug case, and hired a hitman to kill another.
You can read a key portion of the indictment here.
Bergrin was first arrested in May. His lawyers have argued in court papers that prosecutors have tied together baseless cases. And they have argued successfully to have Bergrin removed from solitary confinement, where he had been held after his arrest in May. But since a more detailed indictment was filed earlier this month, they have said little publicly.According to an affidavit from an FBI agent, Bergrin came to serve as "house counsel for a number of criminal organizations, including . . . the Latin Kings, the Bloods, and a number of high-level drug-trafficking organizations." And Bergrin had "essentially become one of the criminals he represents," according to Ralph Marra, the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey.His client list has also included Queen Latifah, Lil' Kim, and mobster Angelo Prisco, as well as a U.S. soldier accused of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, who Bergrin represented pro bono. Bergrin also repped the "King of All Pimps," Jason Itzler, who ran the high-end New York escort service, New York Confidential, that proved to be Eliot Spitzer's undoing. (Itzler called Ashley Dupre, "one of the best hookers ever.") Indeed, prosecutors allege that Bergrin took over the management of the company after Itzler was jailed in 2005.A retired Army Reserve major and the son of a New York City police officer, Bergrin, 53, was an Essex County prosecutor who later worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, before starting a criminal defense practice in 1991.But he may have offered his clients more than just legal representation. The Inquirer reports:
Though the indictment includes one murder and one murder conspiracy, investigators contend that witnesses have linked Bergrin to at least three other homicides.
They also say Bergrin routinely bribed witnesses to win cases. And, they contend, when bribery wasn't an option, he resorted to violence."No witness, no case" was the phrase he used repeatedly in his criminal-defense work, authorities say.In addition to the charges related to bribery, witness intimidation, and running the escort service, Bergrin also allegedly used a Newark restaurant, Isabella's, as a front for drug dealing; and formed a real estate company that conducted phony mortgage deals. Bergrin's undoing may have come when he allegedly smuggled a cellphone into a jail so a client could call a Chicago hitman to set up the murder of a witness. Bergrin himself then traveled to Chicago to meet with the hitman, say the Feds.
But the hitman was a cooperating witness. According to prosecutors, he recorded Bergrin saying things like: "Put on a ski mask and make it look like a robbery. . . . It cannot under any circumstances look like a hit . . . make it look like a home-invasion robbery."The hitman also recorded a conversation in which he told another lawyer, working with Bergrin, that Bergrin wanted to personally take part in the hit.
"He said he wants to do it with me," the hitman said "I said, 'No, Paul. For what you went to law school to become . . . stick with that s-.' Let me do what I have to do.' "Replied the other lawyer: "Paul's a stone killer, bro. . . . That's what he is. . . . He's done work [meaning, committed murder], bro." One underworld source, a former Bergrin client, told the Inquirer that Bergrin "enjoyed life on the edge." Sounds like he may have enjoyed it just a little too much.
Quebec bars and restaurants are being continuously attacked as a biker gang turf war escalated
Two more cafes were firebombed Monday in the French-speaking Canadian city of Montreal, bringing the total of similar incidents to eight in the last month but the motives remain unclear, the Canadian Television reported. Cafe Nouba, the first non-Italian restaurant to be bombed, was hit for the second time Monday morning around 6:30 a.m. local time(1130 GMT). It was first attacked on Nov. 15.
A second one, Cafe Vegas, was targeted about half an hour later. The two received very little damage and no one was injured. The string of Molotov cocktail attacks began in October. All the restaurants are located within a 15 minute drive of each other. Police say mob turf wars, street gangs or copycat arsonists could be involved, but they are not sure because the business owners are keeping quiet.
In the 1990s, Quebec bars and restaurants were being continuously attacked as a biker gang turf war escalated.
A second one, Cafe Vegas, was targeted about half an hour later. The two received very little damage and no one was injured. The string of Molotov cocktail attacks began in October. All the restaurants are located within a 15 minute drive of each other. Police say mob turf wars, street gangs or copycat arsonists could be involved, but they are not sure because the business owners are keeping quiet.
In the 1990s, Quebec bars and restaurants were being continuously attacked as a biker gang turf war escalated.
Friday, 30 October 2009
Extradition request for Christopher "Dudus" Coke is stockpiling weapons in his Kingston stronghold to prevent arrest.
Extradition request for Christopher "Dudus" Coke in August, has so far only responded with requests for more information about the gun and drug trafficking charges against the reputed gang leader.Coke, identified by the U.S. Justice Department as one of the world's most dangerous drug kingpins, allegedly controls a band of gunmen inside Tivoli Gardens, a barricaded neighborhood of Kingston, the capital of Jamaica and a city with one of the highest homicide rates in the Western Hemisphere.U.S. authorities are voicing frustration that Jamaica is not moving more quickly to honor a mutual extradition treaty."The U.S. government is looking forward to the Jamaican government respecting their obligations under the treaty," Patricia Attkisson, spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Kingston, said Thursday.The political opposition has also criticized the government for putting Jamaica into what it calls a standoff over Coke, who is known for his loyalty to the Jamaica Labor Party. Island gangs have loose affiliations with both major parties — a legacy of the 1970s, when political factions provided the guns to intimidate rivals.
"The cascading effect of international reaction to the administration's inaction could lead ultimately to Jamaica being labeled and declared a 'rogue state,' with lasting adverse implications for our people," said Peter Bunting, a lawmaker with the opposition People's National Party.
"The cascading effect of international reaction to the administration's inaction could lead ultimately to Jamaica being labeled and declared a 'rogue state,' with lasting adverse implications for our people," said Peter Bunting, a lawmaker with the opposition People's National Party.
Mongrel Mob is one of the older gangs in New Zealand
Mongrel Mob is one of the older gangs in New Zealand and actually predates the first formation of Bloods and Crips in the country. Since the have worn red, that have become associated as Bloods. The original Mongrel Mob look more like American motorcycle gangs and that’s where their early influence came from. The younger generation of Mongel Mob have picked up the black gang culture emulating Blood and Crip appearances. This newer trend has been influenced by popular culture, the Los Angeles influence on local Samoans, as well as the success of the Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E., a hip-hop group affiliated with gang during the 1980s based in Carson, California, adjacent to South Los Angeles.
John "Boxer" Muscedere told his killers: "Do me. Do me first. I want to go out like a man."
Realising he and his friends had been betrayed and faced death, John "Boxer" Muscedere told his killers: "Do me. Do me first. I want to go out like a man."
Muscedere, who was betrayed by his best friend Wayne Kellestine, was one of eight men shot dead in a barn in Ontario. Their bodies were found on 8 April 2006 in three cars and a tow truck which had been dumped in a field near the town of Shedden, 14km (10 miles) from where they had been killed. Ironically several of the men – suspects in another murder case – had been under surveillance by the Ontario Provincial Police only hours earlier. All eight were associated with the Bandidos, one of North America’s most notorious biker gangs and second only in power to the Hells Angels worldwide. The motive for the bloodshed lay in a deep schism that had developed within the Bandidos’ Canadian chapters.
John ‘Boxer’ Muscedere, 48
Luis ‘Porkchop’ Raposo, 41
George ‘Pony’ Jessome, 52
George ‘Crash’ Kriarakis, 28
Frank ‘Bam Bam’ Salerno, 43
Paul ‘Big Paulie’ Sinopoli, 30
Jamie ‘Goldberg’ Flanz, 37
Michael ‘Little Mikey’ Trotta, 31
Bikers guilty of massacre
The victims were members of the Toronto chapter, who were sponsored by the gang’s Scandinavian wing but were not recognised by the Bandidos’ head office in Texas.
Peter Edwards, a journalist with the Toronto Star and the author of a book on the case that is due out later this year, explained: "There was a chapter based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, who came under the auspices of Toronto.
"But Winnipeg were not granted full patches by Toronto. They effectively had no job security and they grew really frustrated." The killers were led by Michael Sandham, a former soldier and police officer who became president of the Winnipeg chapter.
He tried to claim that he had actually been working undercover for the police, but was unable to explain why he had initially denied being at the scene. Sandham was helped by Kellestine, an Ontario native who was allied with the Winnipeg chapter.
The victims were lured to their deaths in his barn, after being told they would meet to settle their grievances. When police arrived, they found blood smears and pieces of flesh amid the detritus of a biker party – beer bottles on a table and Confederate and Nazi flags hanging on a wall. Kellestine and five of his buddies were arrested. Three years later they finally went on trial. The star prosecution witness was another Bandido, known only as MH, who testified about the events leading up to the killings. MH, who hailed from Winnipeg, told the court the original plan was to "pull the patches" of the Toronto members, effectively throwing them out of the Bandidos. But Kellestine then decided they would have to kill all eight. MH described a messy and farcical situation in which Kellestine frequently changed his mind about whether or not to let his rivals live and at one point allowed Muscedere to call his wife as long as he "didn’t say anything stupid".
He broke down as he described the stoic reaction of one of the men, Frank "Bammer" Salerno.
"Bammer went to shake my hand. I didn’t do it," said MH.
MH said Kellestine had been promised that in return for carrying out the killings he would be named Canadian president of the Bandidos and could start up his own chapter based in nearby London, Ontario. But Mr Edwards, who has covered the trial, said the killers were disorganised and bungling. "They were at the very bottom rung of biker gangs. Some were in their 40s but still lived with their parents. They were not making any money, many of them had been rejected by the Hells Angels and half of them didn’t even own a motorbike," he said. Mr Edwards says they were forced to dump the cars with the bodies in because they were "too cheap to buy enough gasoline".
"They didn’t even set fire to the bodies or the cars," he says. The massacre, and Thursday’s convictions, have left the Bandidos effectively defunct in Canada.
According to Mr Edwards, there is very little public sympathy for the victims because they were bikers, and Canada has seen a lot of biker wars in the past.
Muscedere, who was betrayed by his best friend Wayne Kellestine, was one of eight men shot dead in a barn in Ontario. Their bodies were found on 8 April 2006 in three cars and a tow truck which had been dumped in a field near the town of Shedden, 14km (10 miles) from where they had been killed. Ironically several of the men – suspects in another murder case – had been under surveillance by the Ontario Provincial Police only hours earlier. All eight were associated with the Bandidos, one of North America’s most notorious biker gangs and second only in power to the Hells Angels worldwide. The motive for the bloodshed lay in a deep schism that had developed within the Bandidos’ Canadian chapters.
John ‘Boxer’ Muscedere, 48
Luis ‘Porkchop’ Raposo, 41
George ‘Pony’ Jessome, 52
George ‘Crash’ Kriarakis, 28
Frank ‘Bam Bam’ Salerno, 43
Paul ‘Big Paulie’ Sinopoli, 30
Jamie ‘Goldberg’ Flanz, 37
Michael ‘Little Mikey’ Trotta, 31
Bikers guilty of massacre
The victims were members of the Toronto chapter, who were sponsored by the gang’s Scandinavian wing but were not recognised by the Bandidos’ head office in Texas.
Peter Edwards, a journalist with the Toronto Star and the author of a book on the case that is due out later this year, explained: "There was a chapter based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, who came under the auspices of Toronto.
"But Winnipeg were not granted full patches by Toronto. They effectively had no job security and they grew really frustrated." The killers were led by Michael Sandham, a former soldier and police officer who became president of the Winnipeg chapter.
He tried to claim that he had actually been working undercover for the police, but was unable to explain why he had initially denied being at the scene. Sandham was helped by Kellestine, an Ontario native who was allied with the Winnipeg chapter.
The victims were lured to their deaths in his barn, after being told they would meet to settle their grievances. When police arrived, they found blood smears and pieces of flesh amid the detritus of a biker party – beer bottles on a table and Confederate and Nazi flags hanging on a wall. Kellestine and five of his buddies were arrested. Three years later they finally went on trial. The star prosecution witness was another Bandido, known only as MH, who testified about the events leading up to the killings. MH, who hailed from Winnipeg, told the court the original plan was to "pull the patches" of the Toronto members, effectively throwing them out of the Bandidos. But Kellestine then decided they would have to kill all eight. MH described a messy and farcical situation in which Kellestine frequently changed his mind about whether or not to let his rivals live and at one point allowed Muscedere to call his wife as long as he "didn’t say anything stupid".
He broke down as he described the stoic reaction of one of the men, Frank "Bammer" Salerno.
"Bammer went to shake my hand. I didn’t do it," said MH.
MH said Kellestine had been promised that in return for carrying out the killings he would be named Canadian president of the Bandidos and could start up his own chapter based in nearby London, Ontario. But Mr Edwards, who has covered the trial, said the killers were disorganised and bungling. "They were at the very bottom rung of biker gangs. Some were in their 40s but still lived with their parents. They were not making any money, many of them had been rejected by the Hells Angels and half of them didn’t even own a motorbike," he said. Mr Edwards says they were forced to dump the cars with the bodies in because they were "too cheap to buy enough gasoline".
"They didn’t even set fire to the bodies or the cars," he says. The massacre, and Thursday’s convictions, have left the Bandidos effectively defunct in Canada.
According to Mr Edwards, there is very little public sympathy for the victims because they were bikers, and Canada has seen a lot of biker wars in the past.
Saturday, 24 October 2009
La Familia Michoacána,$207 million were found piled in mountains of notes
La Familia Michoacána, named for its base in the western Mexican state of Michoacán, not only revived the meth market, "they elevated it," says Rodney Benson, special agent in charge in Atlanta for the Drug Enforcement Administration. This week the DEA led a campaign that saw the arrests of more than 300 alleged meth traffickers in the U.S., all allegedly tied to La Familia. It is considered the largest roundup ever of Mexican cartel operatives. One of the busts, at a suburban house in Lawrencevllle, Ga., yielded almost 180 lbs of "the clearest [meth] crystals I have ever seen," says Benson. La Familia is estimated to export as much as half of the 200 tons of crystal meth into the U.S. each year. It was thus a clear target for Project Coronado, the four-year operation by U.S. and Mexico anti-drug officials, which has collared 900 others, mostly La Familia associates, in both countries. Aside from meth trafficking, La Familia has also brought Mexico's gangland violence across the border, into communities as far flung as Atlanta and Seattle. The group, like Mexico's two largest drug gangs, the Gulf and Sinaloa cartels, is also famous for beheading rival traffickers. U.S. Attorney General Holder suggested Thursday that La Familia's "depravity" exceeds that of the Gulf and Sinaloa groups. Whether or not La Familia is Mexico's most violent drug cartel, it is certainly the weirdest. Arguably, it is the world's first "narco-evangelical" gang. During this week's raids, U.S. officials found numerous religious images, "on fireplaces, in closets, everywhere," says one. La Familia members purport to be devout Christians who abstain from drugs themselves. In fact, they insist that while they sell meth and cocaine to the U.S., they keep it away from Mexicans. They also study a special Bible authored by their leader, Nazario Moreno, a.k.a. El Más Loco, or "The Craziest One." The cartel's profits have helped it build a large network of support among the poor in Michoacán, which is also the home state of Mexican President Felipe Calderón.
When the U.S. Congress enacted the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act four years ago, it created a lucrative trafficking niche for La Familia. Michoacán has long been a meth-producing region, much like the northern state of Durango is known for making most of Mexico's heroin (called "brown mud"). La Familia and other Mexican gangs manufacture meth at industrial superlabs that dwarf small-town U.S. shops like those depicted on the AMC cable drama Breaking Bad, churning out tons of the white, flaky crystal each day. And while U.S. law blocks the export of pseudoephedrine to Mexico, La Familia can easily access that key chemical by way of sources in Asia, shipping it in via Michoacán's major Pacific port, Lázaro Cárdenas. In 2006, Mexican police seized 19 tons of it there and linked it to the owner of a Mexico City mansion where $207 million were found piled in mountains of notes — believed to be the biggest drug-cash bust ever.
When the U.S. Congress enacted the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act four years ago, it created a lucrative trafficking niche for La Familia. Michoacán has long been a meth-producing region, much like the northern state of Durango is known for making most of Mexico's heroin (called "brown mud"). La Familia and other Mexican gangs manufacture meth at industrial superlabs that dwarf small-town U.S. shops like those depicted on the AMC cable drama Breaking Bad, churning out tons of the white, flaky crystal each day. And while U.S. law blocks the export of pseudoephedrine to Mexico, La Familia can easily access that key chemical by way of sources in Asia, shipping it in via Michoacán's major Pacific port, Lázaro Cárdenas. In 2006, Mexican police seized 19 tons of it there and linked it to the owner of a Mexico City mansion where $207 million were found piled in mountains of notes — believed to be the biggest drug-cash bust ever.
Monday, 19 October 2009
Homicide rate is now statistically worse in Lambeth, where there have been 12 homicides so far this year, than it is in the Bronx
Homicide rate is now statistically worse in Lambeth, where there have been 12 homicides so far this year, than it is in the Bronx's notorious 52nd precinct, where there have been 6. And gun crime continues to rise sharply in the capital. Although last year saw a drop (see graph below), figures published on Thursday prove that gun enabled crime in London rose by 17% between April and September this year.
Police have seized more than 1,000 guns in London so far this year.
Young criminals are increasingly ready to use firearms after a perceived slight to their reputation. One aspect of the "chaotic" new trend is that they shoot to injure rather than kill, aiming at the victim's legs and leaving their rivals with "war wounds".The number of these shootings now stands at 72, more than double the total for last year. Commander Martin Hewitt said the propensity to use "extreme levels of violence for seemingly very little reason" was a new phenomenon. He said that when Operation Trident began investigating gun crime in the black community most shootings were an "offshoot" of criminal activity.Police have seized more than 1,000 guns in London so far this year. While overall youth violence is falling, police say there is a rise in gun crime and, in particular, the number of non-fatal shootings involving turf wars.Many criminals are inflicting "war wounds" on rivals by shooting them in the legs. The number of these shootings now stands at 72, more than double the total for last year.
Gunmen opened fire into a bar in northern Puerto Rico and killed at least seven people
Gunmen opened fire into a bar in northern Puerto Rico and killed at least seven people, injuring 20 others, police said Sunday. A prosecutor said a battle over drug traffic might have prompted the attack. A 9-year-old girl and a pregnant woman who lost her eight-month-old fetus after being shot were among those seriously wounded, said police Col. Jose Morales. The justice department plans to file a murder charge for the death of the fetus, said prosecutor Wanda Vazquez, who is investigating the case.
Bloody drug gang shootouts left 14 people dead.
2,000 Brazilian police officers patrolled this coastal city as officials pledged to hold a violence-free 2016 Olympics despite bloody drug gang shootouts that left 14 people dead.An hours-long gun battle Saturday between rival gangs in one of the city's slums killed at least 12 people and injured six. A police helicopter was shot down and eight buses set on fire during the incident.Police said Sunday that they had killed two suspected drug traffickers in overnight clashes near the Morro dos Macacos ("Monkey Hill") slum where the gangs fought for territory. But the area was largely peaceful.Two officers died and four were injured Saturday when bullets from the gang battle ripped into their helicopter hovering overhead, forcing it into a fiery crash landing on a soccer field. Officials said they did not know whether the gangs targeted the helicopter or it was hit by stray bullets.Gunfire on the ground killed 10 suspected gunmen and wounded two bystanders.Authorities said the violence had only toughened their resolve to improve security ahead of the Olympics and before 2014, when Brazil will host the World Cup soccer tournament with key games in Rio, the second-biggest city.Rio state Public Safety Director Jose Beltrame told reporters that the violence was limited to a specific area of the city of 6 million and "is not a problem throughout all of Rio de Janeiro."He said authorities would follow through with promised efforts to reduce crime."We proved to the Olympic Committee that we have plans and proposals for Rio de Janeiro," he said. "We proved that our current policy not only consists of going into battle, it also consists of keeping the peace."
Wednesday, 14 October 2009
Gang Warfare between the Hells Angels motorcycle club and ethnic minority gangs in Denmark and Sweden
Gang Warfare between the Hells Angels motorcycle club and ethnic minority gangs in Denmark and Sweden is prompting renewed concern that long-simmering gang tensions are intensifying amid economic woes and resentment over immigration.The Danish capital of Copenhagen saw almost 60 gang-related shooting incidents in the past year, many of them in Nørrebro, just north of the city center. In March, a series of drive-by shootings and assassinations resulted in the deaths of three bystanders and sent shock waves through the city.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Camden man who was shot and witnessed his brother being killed outside the Marriott hotel in Mount Laurel
Camden man who was shot and witnessed his brother being killed outside the Marriott hotel in Mount Laurel last year will serve five years of probation and must cooperate with authorities in the case against those charged in the murder.
Superior Court Judge John Almeida sentenced Luis Pedroza, 27, to the probationary term Friday for violating his previous probation. Pedroza originally was sentenced to three years of probation for unlawful possession of a weapon stemming from a car stop in Delran in 2006, in which he was with one of the men who is now charged with attempting to kill him and with murdering his brother. Antonio K. Streater, 26, and Daniel Cruz, 24, both of Camden, and Richard Martinez, 34, of Atco, are charged with the murder of Gabriel Figueroa, 20, and the attempted murder of Pedroza. They are in custody and have pleaded not guilty. Since their arrest Cruz and Martinez have been identified as associates of the Latin Kings street gang and Streater is a member of the Bloods street gang. On Friday, Pedroza admitted that he violated his earlier probation by fleeing to Puerto Rico within weeks of entering the program. He has served about 300 days in custody, including jail time in Puerto Rico and New Jersey, waiting for the probation violation to be resolved. Assistant Prosecutor Michael Mormando said that time was equivalent to the time he would likely serve as part of a five-year prison sentence with no mandatory minimum. Mormando said Pedroza has indicated he will cooperate with police in the prosecution of the men charged in the shooting. Pedroza was shot along with his brother in an ambush outside the hotel at Route 73 and Fellowship Road on Aug. 16, 2008. On Friday, Almeida told Pedroza he must testify truthfully about the shooting if the case goes to trial as a condition of his probation. He said prosecutors could seek a material witness warrant that would keep him in custody if he did not cooperate.
Camden man who was shot and witnessed his brother being killed outside the Marriott hotel in Mount Laurel
Camden man who was shot and witnessed his brother being killed outside the Marriott hotel in Mount Laurel last year will serve five years of probation and must cooperate with authorities in the case against those charged in the murder.
Superior Court Judge John Almeida sentenced Luis Pedroza, 27, to the probationary term Friday for violating his previous probation. Pedroza originally was sentenced to three years of probation for unlawful possession of a weapon stemming from a car stop in Delran in 2006, in which he was with one of the men who is now charged with attempting to kill him and with murdering his brother. Antonio K. Streater, 26, and Daniel Cruz, 24, both of Camden, and Richard Martinez, 34, of Atco, are charged with the murder of Gabriel Figueroa, 20, and the attempted murder of Pedroza. They are in custody and have pleaded not guilty. Since their arrest Cruz and Martinez have been identified as associates of the Latin Kings street gang and Streater is a member of the Bloods street gang. On Friday, Pedroza admitted that he violated his earlier probation by fleeing to Puerto Rico within weeks of entering the program. He has served about 300 days in custody, including jail time in Puerto Rico and New Jersey, waiting for the probation violation to be resolved. Assistant Prosecutor Michael Mormando said that time was equivalent to the time he would likely serve as part of a five-year prison sentence with no mandatory minimum. Mormando said Pedroza has indicated he will cooperate with police in the prosecution of the men charged in the shooting. Pedroza was shot along with his brother in an ambush outside the hotel at Route 73 and Fellowship Road on Aug. 16, 2008. On Friday, Almeida told Pedroza he must testify truthfully about the shooting if the case goes to trial as a condition of his probation. He said prosecutors could seek a material witness warrant that would keep him in custody if he did not cooperate.
Turkish gangwars assassinated Oktay Erbasli
motorbike assassin shot dead Oktay Erbasli, 23, as he sat at the wheel of his Range Rover in rush-hour traffic. His girlfriend and five-year-old stepson were miraculously unharmed in Tottenham, North London. Cops believe Erbasli was the victim of a vicious drug war between rival Turkish gangs. One onlooker said: "The boy was crying hysterically and screaming, 'My Daddy! My Daddy!' It was heartbreaking." Erbasli is thought to have been shot in the legs earlier this year. A family pal said: "He feared for his life."
