Hells Angel Ronaldo Lising had a substantial criminal record for assault and trafficking cocaine and crystal methamphetamine

The accused Ronaldo Lising, Randy Potts, John Virgil Punko and Jean Joseph Violette laughed and congratulated their lawyers after the verdict.Hells Angel Ronaldo Lising had a substantial criminal record for assault and trafficking cocaine and crystal methamphetamine, and was on bail when he was arrested on the two firearms offences now before the court.“Mr. Lising is a sophisticated criminal,” the prosecutor told B.C. Supreme Court Justice Selwyn Romilly.“He leads a criminal lifestyle,” Levitz added, reading out a wiretap statement in which Lising confided he was taking a risk, especially since he has children, but also had to weigh the rewards of his activities.The Crown asked the judge to impose a 30-month sentence, consecutive to the nine years and three months Lising is already serving.Four Hells Angels laughed and shook hands with their lawyers Monday after a jury acquitted them of committing crimes in association with, or for the benefit of, a criminal organization.While the jury returned nine guilty verdicts on a 28-charge indictment against the four members of the Hells Angels' East End chapter, the rejection of the criminal organization charge was a blow to the Crown.Had it succeeded, it would have been the first such conviction in B.C. against the Hells Angels, which has always maintained it is just a motorcycle club.
It was the second failed test case of the anti-gang law against the Hells Angels in B.C. arising from the same $10-million police investigation."It's unfortunate the jury wasn't able to conclude what judges in other parts of Canada found -- that the Hells Angels is a criminal organization," prosecutor Mark Levitz said outside court after the verdict.The jury did find the accused guilty of some extortion and weapons offences "and we're pleased to that extent," he said.The verdict, which followed three days of jury deliberations and a nine-month trial, was also a disappointment to police, who promised to pay $1 million to key witness Michael Plante, who worked as a police agent and infiltrated the East End chapter of the Hells Angels.

"We're grateful to live in a democracy and have a jury system," defence lawyer Bonnie Craig, one of three lawyers representing Potts,

said after the verdict.
Potts, Punko and Lising will remain in custody until sentencing July 22. Violette will remain on bail until he is sentenced Oct. 28 by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Selwyn Romilly.Potts was convicted of four offences: Having control of illegal grenades, possessing a loaded Colt .45 semi-automatic pistol, possessing an Intratec 9-mm semi-automatic pistol, a Ruger .22-calibre semi-automatic rifle and Voere bolt-action rifle and a .44 Ruger revolver.Lising was convicted of possessing two loaded prohibited firearms: A Rossi .357 Magnum revolver and a Walther PPK/S .380-calibre semi-automatic pistol.Violette was found guilty of the extortion of Glen Louie, a drug dealer who was beaten for using the Hells Angels name without permission. He was also convicted of the illegal possession of a loaded Beretta 20 semi-automatic pistol and a Ruger SP 101 revolver.Punko was convicted of counselling Plante to commit mischief by wilfully damaging property, and the unauthorized possession of a loaded Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol.The two-year, $10-million police investigation that led to the just-concluded trial has also resulted in other criminal proceedings. The final one, a drug trial involving two Hells Angels members, begins Sept. 9.Last year, David Francis Giles, 58, a senior member of the East End chapter of the Hells Angels, was acquitted of cocaine trafficking in Kelowna but two co-accused were convicted.The Hells Angels now operate a clubhouse in the Okanagan city.

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four Hells Angels currently on trial -- Ronaldo Lising, Randy Potts, John Punko and Jean Violette.

If any of the four Hells Angels currently on trial for criminal organization charges are convicted, it would be devastating for the biker gang, said the RCMP's top national security officer."It would be significant and it would be devastating for the B.C. Hells Angels," RCMP assistant commissioner Bob Paulson, who is charge of national security criminal investigations in Ottawa, said Friday."They are indeed a criminal organization and they need to be caught and punished for the bad things they do," he said.Four years ago, Paulson was the officer in charge of the police investigation in B.C. that led to the charges against the four Hells Angels currently on trial -- Ronaldo Lising, Randy Potts, John Punko and Jean Violette.

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Warrant was issued for 37-year old Lawrence Dean Bergstrom, a full-patch member of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang.

Warrant was issued for 37-year old Lawrence Dean Bergstrom, a full-patch member of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. According to Nanaimo RCMP, aside from the badge and uniform components — including several pairs of pants, shirts and an RCMP duty jacket — police found items used for gift-card fraud and identity theft.
Firearms found at the home included a 22-calibre handgun, 12-gauge shotgun and a high-powered rifle.Nanaimo RCMP said Thursday they had been in contact with Bergstrom and expected that he would turn himself in. Bergstrom is also involved in the ongoing civil case surrounding the forfeiture of the Nanaimo Hells Angels clubhouse in 2007. The clubhouse was the only base on Vancouver Island for the club, one of seven Hells Angels chapters in B.C.Nanaimo Hells Angels spokesman Fred Widdifield said he had not heard of the police raid and was unfamiliar with the property in question.Central Saanich police have verified that the badge found at the house is authentic.“This is very disconcerting,” said Const. Gary O’Brien, spokesman for Nanaimo RCMP. “If there was criminal activity going on in that house,” he said, “we can only assume that they were using the uniform articles to pose as officers for criminal activity.”Police are investigating how the uniform articles wound up at the residence. A spokesman for the Central Saanich police department was unavailable for comment. Although policies differ between police departments, O’Brien said that for the RCMP, badges are issued to officers at the time they’re sworn in.The badge is returned upon retirement, or if an officer resigns or is terminated, he said.Still, he said, the system is not foolproof. “Officers are just like the general public.” Like anyone else, things can be stolen from their houses and cars, he said. O’Brien also pointed out that for the majority of police departments, on-site laundry services are not provided to officers for their uniforms. This means officers who take uniforms to public laundromats risk having articles lost or stolen.

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Yab Yum, lost its operating licence in January 2008 after authorities said the club had been taken over by a chapter of the Hell’s Angels

The notorious brothel, Yab Yum, lost its operating licence in January 2008 after authorities said the club was being used for criminal activity and had been taken over by a chapter of the Hell’s Angels.Dutch council of state rules Wednesday that one of Amsterdam’s luxurious brothel should remain close definitively as ordered by the city council in 2008.The city council believed a member of the Hell's Angels with a criminal record was running the club, while someone else's name was on the deeds.The withdrawal of the brothel’s licence was a clampdown on sex industry-connected crime in the capital. The council shut down the club by using special legislation known as the Bibob law. Under Bibob legislation since 2003, the council has the right to withdraw or refuse a licence to anyone involved in crime or money laundering.Earlier an Amsterdam court had backed the council's withdrawal of the licence as there was a serious danger of the licence being used for fraudulent practices, but it found there was not enough evidence to prove claims that the Hell's Angels were behind the takeover of the club.

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23-year-old man was shot and wounded in Copenhagen mistaken for a member of the AK81 group.

23-year-old man was shot and wounded in Copenhagen yesterday evening - police say he was mistaken for a member of the AK81 group. Copenhagen police believe a young man who was shot and wounded yesterday evening in the Nørrebro district of the capital, was mistaken for a well-known member of the Hells Angels support group AK81. Shots were fired at the corner of Raadmandsgade and Mimersgade streets from what is believed to have been be a black BMW 525 containing four young immigant men . The target of the attack was a group of young men who police say have nothing to do with the current gang warfare. "This was a group of bodybuilder-type men with tattoos, and one of them resembles a well-known member of AK81," the police investigation chief tells Ritzau. The young man was hit in an arm and leg after 5-6 shots were fired from the car, which then sped away towards Tagensvej street. Wednesday's shooting was the third in just over a week. On Wednesday of last week a 26-year-old ethnic Iranian was killed, while last Saturday a 33-year-old ethnic Turk was killed while taking part in a remembrance ceremony for the 26-year-old.

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Mick Hawi is one of a number of Comancheros charged over the fatal brawl that led to the death of Hells Angels associate Anthony Zervas.

Mick Hawi is one of a number of Comancheros charged over the fatal brawl that led to the death of Hells Angels associate Anthony Zervas. In the same court, the brother of Anthony Zervas, Peter, was granted bail for his alleged involvement in the brawl that led to the death of his younger brother.Mick Hawi is the only Comanchero charged with murder; the others are charged with riot and affray.Hawi appeared in prison greens via video link in Central Local Court today and bail was formally refused until the matter returns to court next week.Hells Angels member Peter Zervas is charged with riot and affray, along with other Hells Angels members. Zervas's lawyer told Central Local Court that Peter and Anthony Zervas were victims and that Peter was seriously injured in a drive-by shooting not long after the fatal brawl.
The Crown argued that Peter Zervas has been well enough to go about his business and has not been wearing a brace he said he needs when he was arrested.In granting him bail with strict reporting conditions, a magistrate said there is some evidence of self defence, that Peter Zervas suffers depression and that he saw his brother killed.

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