Quebec Biker war
Encyclopedia
The Quebec Biker war refers to the violent turf war that began in 1994 and continued until late 2002 in Quebec
, Canada
.
The war began as the Hells Angels
in Quebec
began to make a push to establish a monopoly on street-level drug sales in the province. A number of drug dealers and crime families resisted and established groups such as the "Alliance to fight the Angels". Eventually, a number of dealers formed the Rock Machine
.
The war resulted in the bombings of many establishments and murders on both sides. It has claimed more than 150 lives, including some innocent bystanders such as Daniel Desrochers, an 11-year-old boy who was fatally injured by shrapnel as he was playing near a jeep that was blown up.
The war eventually ended with mass killings
by the Hells Angels
, plus public outcry over the deaths of innocent bystanders resulted in police pressure including the incarceration of over 100 bikers.
In April 2009, over 156 members of the Hells Angels were arrested in Quebec, New Brunswick
, France
and the Dominican Republic
mostly in connection to crimes related to the Biker war. The arrests solved at least 22 murders committed between 1992 and 2009. Four Hells Angels bunkers were also seized by police including one in Sorel-Tracy
that was firebombed in 2008. Dozens of arrests were previously made earlier in the year as part of Operation Axe in February and Operation Baladeur in March.
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
The war began as the Hells Angels
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a worldwide one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their primary motto...
in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
began to make a push to establish a monopoly on street-level drug sales in the province. A number of drug dealers and crime families resisted and established groups such as the "Alliance to fight the Angels". Eventually, a number of dealers formed the Rock Machine
Rock Machine
Rock Machine, or The Rock Machine M.C., is an outlaw motorcycle gang with six Canadian chapters, six United States chapters and eight chapters in Australia. Formed in 1986 by Salvatore Cazzetta, a former friend of Hells Angels Quebec chapter president Maurice Boucher, the Rock Machine competed...
.
The war resulted in the bombings of many establishments and murders on both sides. It has claimed more than 150 lives, including some innocent bystanders such as Daniel Desrochers, an 11-year-old boy who was fatally injured by shrapnel as he was playing near a jeep that was blown up.
The war eventually ended with mass killings
Shedden massacre
The Shedden Massacre involved the killing of eight men, whose bodies were found in a farmer's field five kilometres north of Shedden, a hamlet in the Canadian province of Ontario, on April 8, 2006. Four vehicles, with the bodies inside, were first discovered by a farmer...
by the Hells Angels
Hells Angels
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a worldwide one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their primary motto...
, plus public outcry over the deaths of innocent bystanders resulted in police pressure including the incarceration of over 100 bikers.
In April 2009, over 156 members of the Hells Angels were arrested in Quebec, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
mostly in connection to crimes related to the Biker war. The arrests solved at least 22 murders committed between 1992 and 2009. Four Hells Angels bunkers were also seized by police including one in Sorel-Tracy
Sorel-Tracy, Quebec
Sorel-Tracy is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada and the geographical end point of the Lake Champlain Valley at the confluence of the Richelieu River and the St. Lawrence River, on the western edge of Lac Saint-Pierre downstream and east of nearby Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2006...
that was firebombed in 2008. Dozens of arrests were previously made earlier in the year as part of Operation Axe in February and Operation Baladeur in March.
Books and newspaper articles
- Winterhalder, Edward, Out in Bad Standings: Inside the Bandidos Motorcycle Club - The Making of a Worldwide Dynasty, Blockhead City Press, 2005/Seven Locks Press, 2007 (ISBN 0-9771-7470-0)
- Winterhalder, Edward, & De Clercq, Wil, The Assimilation: Rock Machine Become Bandidos – Bikers United Against the Hells Angels, ECW Press, 2008 (ISBN 1-5502-2824-2)