Despite months of legal troubles, the East End Hells Angels showed they are still around Saturday with a ride through city streets attended by close to 100 full-patch members and associates.
Vancouver Police Sgt. Randy Fincham said the bikers “took to the streets to send a message to their rivals that they still dominate the underworld.”
The East End clubhouse, at 3598 East Georgia, is the subject of a civil forfeiture application by the B.C. government which wants to seize the fortified house because of links to criminal activities.
As well, several East End members and associates, who were convicted after the successful E-Pandora undercover investigation, have also been named in recent civil forfeiture lawsuits because of crimes they committed in the clubhouse.
Fincham said police were watching as the Hells Angels did their ride Saturday, which started and ended at the clubhouse, with a stop at a Burnaby cemetery Saturday afternoon.
Dozens of Harleys were parked outside the clubhouse afterwards as curious neighbours and dog-walkers wondered what was going on.
“Police closely monitor gang functions to prevent criminal organizations such as the Hells Angels from disrupting the general public,” Fincham said.
“Hells Angels rides are often organized to pay tribute to a fallen member of the club, but not all members receive such recognition from the group.”
