a175e6c8   
   XPost: can.politics, alt.true-crime, tor.general   
   From: gregcarrsober@gmail.com   
      
   OTTAWA — A man accused of being the ring leader of a drug network tied   
   to the Hells Angels was found not guilty Thursday of series of charges   
   related to trafficking marijuana and cocaine for a criminal   
   organization.   
      
   Michael Clairoux was found guilty of only one of the eight charges he   
   faced — possession for the purpose of trafficking, for a stash of 958   
   grams of cannabis resin, or hashish.   
      
   He was released on bail, after 17 months in jail, until sentencing   
   next week.   
      
   Ontario Justice Jacqueline Loignon dismissed most of Clairoux’s   
   testimony as “contrived” as she read parts of her 60-page decision in   
   an Ottawa courtroom. She said there was a “strong possibility” that   
   Clairoux, who was 37 at the time of his arrest, participated in a   
   particular drug cell of the Hells Angels that operates in Ottawa but   
   ruled that the Crown had not proved his involvement — never mind his   
   leadership — beyond a reasonable doubt.   
      
   His lawyer Diane Condo argued he should be sentenced to time served.   
      
   “This has been a very long haul,” Condo said. “It’s a big, big   
   decision for my client.”   
      
   Clairoux was one of a dozen people arrested in September 2011 at the   
   end of a 12-month police drug investigation dubbed Project Finale,   
   which involved extensive surveillance and wiretaps. His stepson Daniel   
   Levesque, 25, was also charged. Levesque pleaded guilty and was   
   sentenced last July to five years less a day in prison for conspiring   
   to traffic cocaine and marijuana for the benefit of a criminal   
   organization, possessing a homemade .32-calibre handgun and   
   ammunition, and attempting to obstruct justice.   
      
   Loignon ruled that the evidence against Clairoux was circumstantial.   
   The six times Clairoux was seen interacting with the members of the   
   alleged drug ring during the year-long investigation “cannot be   
   characterized as frequently,” she said.   
      
   On Nov. 18, 2010, police saw a Hells Angel member hand Clairoux a wad   
   of cash, court heard. Though Loignon rejected Clairoux’s testimony   
   that it was in fact a piece of jewelry, she ruled that the Crown   
   suggestion the cash was for drugs was “not the only explanation,”   
   especially since there was a gap between the transaction and cocaine   
   shipments.   
      
   She also rejected Clairoux’s testimony that a text message sent to him   
   referring to “ka-ching” was simply about a coin collection, but ruled   
   that it did not prove anything conclusive.   
      
   Clairoux testified that when he told a woman, “Every day is a   
   Saturday” and “I have people who work for me,” he was just posturing   
   to impress her. He was not working and was on disability at the time.   
      
   Clairoux also denied the suggestion that a stack of T-shirts with the   
   letters ORL signified Order, Respect, Loyalty. He said the shirts   
   emblazoned with skulls and sabres were not meant for members of the   
   Hells Angels. Rather it was just neat swag for the people of Orléans.   
      
      
   “I do not find that convincing in the least,” Loignon said.   
      
   She didn’t find the Crown argument convincing, either.   
      
   Clairoux was acquitted of conspiracy to traffic marijuana, conspiracy   
   to traffic cocaine, and three criminal organization counts: enhancing,   
   directing and instructing. He was also acquitted of possessing the   
   proceeds of crime — $1,170 that Loignon ruled was “not an unusual sum   
   of money.” She accepted Clairoux’s testimony that the funds were   
   leftover from a recent trip to Europe.   
      
   Since Clairoux has a medical marijuana certificate, he was acquitted   
   of one count of possession for the purpose of trafficking. But Loignon   
   rejected Clairoux’s testimony that he was in possession of 958 grams   
   of cannabis resin because he was experimenting with mixing the drugs   
   with butter. She also rejected his argument that his hashish press was   
   simply a welding project to keep him busy while he was off work.   
      
   Clairoux and his wife were each ordered to post a $5,000 bond to   
   secure his release. He was ordered to avoid contact with a long list   
   of people and to remain at his Orléans home except in the case of a   
   medical emergency.   
      
   He is scheduled to return to court on Feb. 27 to hear his sentence.   
      
      
   Read more:   
   http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Alleged+Hells+Angels+drug+ring   
   eader+found+guilty+most+charges/7997759/story.html#ixzz2LdDHloxc   
      
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