To avoid starting another bloody war, the Hells Angels break with their habits and attempt to resolve the violent conflict that pits them against human traffickers in the state capital through negotiations.
• Also read: 25 actors in the conflict raging in Quebec said their lives were in danger
Members of the ruthless gang involved in the biker war that left 165 dead in Quebec between 1994 and 2002 actually learned to have conversations with rebel traffickers from a group led by young boss Dave “Pic” Turmel, our investigative agency .
The latter refused for a year to pay the Hells royalties amounting to 10% of their turnover – commonly referred to in the underworld as “tax” or “rent” – as has become the norm in this sector for more than a decade.
Although they are known for dominating Quebec's drug market, the Hells have accepted the repeated attacks they have faced in connection with this feud in recent months without much retaliation.
Unobtrusive profile
According to our information, the Hells want to keep a low profile and prevent this conflict from escalating into an all-out war that could spread elsewhere, such as Montreal, where the recalcitrant drug traffickers have ties to the fearsome Profit Boys street gang.
Additionally, our sources believe that the fifteen members of the Hells from the Quebec chapter, all of whom have regained their freedom in recent years after serving long prison sentences for their roles in the murderous war they most recently waged against the Rock Machine 90s, would not be inclined to risk another prison sentence by getting involved in another armed struggle.
“Family photo” of bikers from the Quebec chapter, in Percé, in Gaspésie, in 2009. Courtesy
“They rely on negotiations to find agreements rather than force.”
“THE [motards] “They have learned a lot in recent years and are more oriented towards negotiations to find agreements than violence,” said Chief Inspector Michel Patenaude, head of the criminal investigation department at the Sûreté du Québec, in a report published in the JE on Friday evening. Show airs on TVA.
The Sûreté du Québec inspector in charge of organized crime, Michel Patenaude Screenshot JE
Police believed they were seeing a lull at the start of the year. But last week, three businesses linked to the Hells went up in flames in Quebec, Beauce and La Pocatière.
“We kill the competition”
The “soft approach” currently advocated by the Hells is in stark contrast to the methods traditionally used since the biker gang founded its first Canadian chapter in Montreal in December 1977.
“We are killing the competition. For example, in the drug space, if your competitor doesn't want to do business with you and he doesn't understand it, eliminate him. And then the others will understand that it is better for them to do business with you,” former Hells Angels Sylvain Boulanger told SQ investigators when he became the operation’s star informant. SharQc.
Flight to Europe
According to our sources, in addition to the negotiations, the bikers hope to “isolate” their leader Dave Turmel, whose dispute with his former drug supplier and rookie color carrier of the Quebec Hells, Mathieu Pelletier, is the origin of this confrontation.
Mathieu Pelletier, full member of the Hells Angels. Photo courtesy
Turmel, described in police documents as the leader of the Blood Mafia Family (BMF) street gang, fled the country last summer shortly before a warrant for his arrest was served by the county police department. Quebec City following an anti-drug investigation.
The 27-year-old boss is currently living in exile in a European country from where he continues to direct his criminal activities as well as his insurgency against the criminal organization that authorities believe is currently the most powerful in Canada.
For their part, the Canadian authorities have initiated steps with the Interpol agency in the hope of putting an end to Dave Turmel's escape abroad and sending him back to Quebec to face trial, according to our information. However, there is no indication that his arrest is imminent.
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