David Francis Giles East End Hells Angels had moved into the B.C. Interior city of Kelowna, calling themselves the K-Town Crew,

test case is the trial of a senior member of the East End Hells Angels.If the trial judge rules the chapter is a criminal organization when a verdict is rendered March 27, it will be devastating for the Hells Angels in B.C, said RCMP Insp. Gary Shinkaruk, head of the outlaw motorcycle gang squad."It would be devastating locally, nationally and internationally," he said. "It would be an embarrassment for them."He said the East End Hells Angels are "extremely worried. They're realizing the law is evolving."The trial judge, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Anne MacKenzie, has heard months of evidence regarding David Francis Giles of the East End Hells Angels chapter and two co-accused.She must now decide whether the trio were acting in a "joint venture," as alleged by the Crown, with regard to nine kilograms of cocaine seized in Kelowna, B.C. in 2005.MacKenzie said this week the Crown needs to prove that the accused were acting in concert in possessing cocaine for the purpose of trafficking and that the accused were committing a crime in association with a criminal organization - the East End Hells Angels.The trial is a B.C. test case of Canada's relatively new anti-gang law, which is being applied - for the first time in B.C. - against the Hells Angels. A ruling against the biker gang would likely result in police targeting the other Hells Angels chapters in B.C. - Vancouver, Haney, White Rock, Mission and Nanaimo.So there is more at stake at this trial than the guilt or innocence of Giles, 58, and alleged Hells Angels associates David Roger Revell, 43, and Richard Andrew Rempel, 24. Revell and Rempel are also accused of cocaine trafficking.During the 10-month trial, which ended Wednesday, the Crown alleged the East End Hells Angels had moved into the B.C. Interior city of Kelowna, calling themselves the K-Town Crew, and were planning to establish a new chapter to take over the lucrative illegal drug trade in the Okanagan.The trial heard of a massive $10-million police investigation in which the RCMP offered a Vancouver man $1 million to infiltrate the East End Hells Angels.The man, who now is in hiding under a new name, testified at Giles' trial and is expected later to testify at a number of pending trials.Most of Giles' trial was conducted under a sweeping ban on publication imposed by the judge to protect the rights of other Hells Angels facing trials.

You Might Also Like :