B.C. moves to seize Hells Angels clubhouses in Nanaimo, Vancouver, Kelowna
British Columbia's civil forfeiture office moved Friday to seize assets belonging to the Hells Angels, including three clubhouses in Nanaimo, Vancouver and Kelowna.
A spokesperson for B.C.'s anti-gang Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit said its officers would attend the clubhouses to keep the peace alongside local police while the civil forfeiture agency took control of the properties.
Mike Farnworth, the province's public safety minister and solicitor-general, said he was "extremely pleased" with the seizures underway Friday, saying the actions "send a very strong message that crime doesn’t pay."
"As we've known for a long time, the Hells Angels is a criminal organization," Farnworth told CTV News in an interview.
"It doesn't matter if it's a clubhouse or other asset – a high-value car or high-value boat – if it's been obtained through organized crime, they're going to lose it."
In February, B.C.'s highest court ruled the province could seize the clubhouses because the bikers would likely keep using the properties to plan or commit illegal activities.
The B.C. Court of Appeal decision overturned a 2020 ruling in B.C. Supreme Court that allowed the biker gang to retain ownership of the properties because the forfeiture office failed to prove they would be used to commit crimes.
The unanimous ruling from the three-member appellate court found the lower court's decision was "tainted" in several ways, including its failure to link the club's "penchant for secrecy" and "preoccupation with rats and snitches" with its efforts to hide criminal activity.
The panel wrote the clubhouses provided a "safe space" for the planning and commission of crimes, and found it "inescapable that the clubhouses were likely to be used in the future as they had been in the past: to enhance and facilitate their members’ ability to commit unlawful acts."
A sign outside the Hells Angels clubhouse on Victoria Road in Nanaimo on April 14, 2023. (CTV News)
B.C. Premier David Eby told reporters the ruling "confirms the direction" the province is taking on organized crime, saying the decision "sends a strong message under our existing civil forfeiture regime to criminal organizations."
The court battle began after Mounties raided the gang's Nanaimo clubhouse in 2007 and the province's civil forfeiture office initiated proceedings to seize the property and its contents.
The seizure was later broadened to include clubhouses in East Vancouver and Kelowna.
The Hells Angels clubhouse on Victoria Road in Nanaimo on Friday, April 14, 2023. (CTV News)
PROPERTIES VALUED AT $3 MILLION
The Hells Angels filed a counterclaim and successfully challenged the constitutionality of B.C.'s Civil Forfeiture Act as it relates to future criminality.
The B.C. Supreme Court dismissed the claims of the director of civil forfeiture in 2020 and ordered the properties returned to the Hells Angels.
The B.C. attorney general and the director of civil forfeiture appealed that decision last year, ending with the B.C. high court's reversal of the decision.
The three clubhouses – located at 805 Victoria Rd. in Nanaimo, 3598 E. Georgia St. in Vancouver and 837 Ellis Street in Kelowna – are collectively valued at more than $3 million, according to the B.C. Assessment office.
The province will now examine "what is the best use in the public interest" of the seized properties, the solicitor-general said.
Rick Ciarniello, a Hells Angels B.C. spokesperson, did not respond to a request for comment.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
BREAKING 15-year-old boy stabbed Thursday in Nepean dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Nylander defends Leafs' core after playoff exit, Toronto again picks up the pieces
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid climate change warnings, Canadians lukewarm on electric vehicles
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three dead, two hospitalized, following collision in Fredericton: police
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
Montreal man on the hook for thousands of dollars after a feature on his Tesla caused an accident
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna's biggest-ever concert transforms Rio's Copacabana beach into a massive dance floor
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
Mexican authorities say thieves killed 2 Australians and an American to steal their truck
Thieves killed two Australians and an American on a surfing trip to Mexico in order to steal their truck, particularly because they wanted the tires, authorities said Sunday.