Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 26, 2004, Winnipeg, Manitoba A4 Winnipeg free press saturday june 26, 2004 biker Case collapses biker Snitch continued from Page a1 the lawyers say they will discuss a possible civil suit against Justice officials with their clients. Police chief Jack Swatski yesterday called the charges ludicrous and Way off he said up until Early this month police and the Crown believed they had a solid prosecution and Only dropped the Case when it became Clear coquette would not make a reliable wit Ness. Coquette ? who was paid More than $100,000 for his participation in the Case and had the charges against him stayed ? told police last year that his arresting officers deceived him and did to allow him to seek Legal advice before he made the decision to become an informant. I made a Deal to get out of this mess coquette who Only has a Grade 7 Educa Tion said in a signed oct. 28, 2003, hand written statement. At no time was my lawyer present. They keep telling me there was no need for my lawyer to get involved. We Are All on the same Page. We told what we were giving you. There would be no need for a lawyer to be Here for you to give us the information we the Deal was consummated after three straight Days and nights of bar gaining with police which included plenty of Coffee but no sleep said coquette. I just went on trusting them and thinking that a the right thing to do he said. In a nov. 26 interview with Winnipeg police Insp. Gord Schumacher and staff sgt. Alan Scott coquette said he started having second thoughts about becoming an informant in the Days after his arrest because police appeared to be backing out of meeting his main demand ? protecting his wife a Uncle Arthur Pereira. Pereira had a cocaine Possession charge he wanted dropped and both he and coquette claimed police said that was no problem. Coquette demanded Pereira be involved in any Protection Deal should he give police evidence against the Zig Zag Crew Street enforcers for the Manitoba Hells Angels. Coquette claims police promised Pereira would be spared a criminal record he would get an absolute Dis charge if he pleaded guilty to a drug charge. Instead when Pereira appeared in court he got 42 months behind bars according to ramp officers who wrote a series of letters to City police. If i was going to do it again i would it Trust. Us. Take the word of the offi cers coquette said in the interview. I know that my personal feeling is that they just lost control of it. They lost control of something that they did to have and they did to know where to go with Settle debts in the meetings with Schumacher and Scott coquette said in Exchange for his and Pereiras evidence he wanted police to Settle their personal debts pay for relocation finance their new lives once relocated and wipe out their criminal records. But coquette said almost right from the beginning the officers were promis ing him things they later found out they could to deliver. I guess when you re not the ones that Are making the decisions you should to be telling like saying this is what a going to happen ? coquette said. Through the entire two year process coquette and Pereira expressed continual frustration that police weren to going to meet their financial demands. Pereira even threatened during inter views with Schumacher and Scott to commit suicide rather than testify against the Hells Angels. In court thursday Crown attorney Brian Bell said prosecutors Only Learned coquette was making demands in Exchange for his testimony on june 3. Bell said he met coquette june 16 and it released. Swatski said yesterday he was Dis Turbed by the image As the gesture seemed aimed More at Winnipeg than just the criminal Justice system. Id like to know what their mothers and fathers think of that he said. Coquette a whereabouts Are unknown. He a been free since at least the begin Ning of this month when he signed him self out of the Federal witness Protection program. Justice officials say they will examine whether to reinstate the Crim Inal charges against him based on his failure to live up to the Deal. Justice officials also insist the Deci Sion to stay the biker Case is unrelated to mysterious allegations of potential police misconduct raised earlier this year by a senior Crown attorney. In that Case Crown attorney Bob mor Rison has said police May have commit Ted criminal acts in their handling of a confidential informant in the Hells Case whose identity remains a secret. The Crown was set to make arguments thursday morning on Why it can to pro vide further information to defence lawyers but the Issue became moot when the Case was dropped. Defence lawyers have accused Justice officials of Only quitting the Case when faced with having to disclose further information on the allegations of police misconduct. Morrison had filed a Brief earlier this week outlining the crowns position he was set to argue. He said it is remark Able lawyers and others associated with became Clear coquette would be an untre four of the bikers walked out of the the Case Haven to figured out the liable witness. Downtown Winnipeg remand Centre informers identity based on information Bell said coquette a demands related thursday afternoon to waiting stretch already disclosed. To promises he claimed were broken by Limos and a hero a Welcome from family much of his Brief ? obtained yester City police. Friends and other bikers wearing their Day by the free press ? is written in Bell blamed coquette As he stayed All full colours. The fourth Moar is in Stony coded language. Morrison Speaks of charges ? including conspiracy to Mountain Penitentiary on unrelated two parallel Independent streams of commit murder and participating in a charges. Information that involve the same per criminal organization ? against the five to add insult to injury a group of their son and same incident. Accused. He said they had no Case with supporters ? most members of the Zig they Are parallel and Independent out coquette ? their Cornerstone ? on Zag Crew ? gave the Middle Finger to because they have not yet been con Board. Media photographers As the four were nested by interested parties. If connection is allowed to occur the person will be identified As an informer he said. Morrison said it is crucial to Public safety that the identity of the informer ? who is not believed to be coquette or Pereira ? remain confidential. Swatski said the internal police investigations Are continuing into Morrison a reference to possible police misconduct and what went wrong with coquette a Deal. Its premature to say whether blame should be placed he said referring to the failed prosecution. Swatski said the former accused would not disappear off the police radar and vowed to continue the fight against organized crime. Lets just say there Are four people on the Street we certainly have an inter est in.?. . ;