The young boss Dave “Pic” Turmel, who manages to wage with his gang a violent war against the Hells Angels in the Quebec region even though he has been on the run in Europe for several months, is still not the subject of a global wanted notice from the Interpol agency.
• Read also: Hells Mario “Banana” Auger traveled to Europe to try to resolve the conflict with Dave “Pic” Turmel
However, several Quebec criminals who have fled justice in the past, including Hells Angels, have already been tracked abroad without delay by Interpol.
Police sources have confirmed to our Bureau of Investigation that steps are underway to intensify the hunt targeting the leader of the Blood Family Mafia (BFM), who is believed to be hiding in Portugal.
The “red notice”
No less than 196 countries are members of Interpol, making it the largest police organization in the world.
Currently, a total of 6,817 fugitive criminals from around the world are wanted in these 196 countries, under an alert that authorities call a “red notice.”
Around fifty Canadians are currently the subject of such an international wanted notice.
The logo of the Interpol agency.
“Archive photo, AFP”
Serious crimes
The seriousness of the crimes with which the fugitive is accused in his country of origin is a primary criterion in the evaluation and processing of a request for a “red notice” from Interpol, according to police sources we consulted.
Dave Turmel is wanted by the Quebec police for crimes that are not punishable by the most severe penalties in the Canadian Criminal Code: drug trafficking, conspiracy and armed assault.
- Listen to the interview with Éric Thibault, journalist at the Quebecor investigation office, via QUB :
Most Canadians on the run who are tracked by Interpol are charged with murder, attempted murder, terrorism or escape from lawful custody.
One of them, Montreal trafficker Rabih Alkhalil, has been wanted by Interpol since he escaped from a British Columbia prison on July 21, 2022, where he was being held awaiting trial for murder.
Rabih Alkhalil has short black hair and brown eyes.
Photo courtesy, RCMP
The urgency to act
Is the wanted criminal a dangerous killer or predator who may imminently kill other victims? The urgency of intervention for law enforcement represents the other major factor likely to accelerate the issuance of such an alert via Interpol.
In the Turmel case, our sources wonder if the possible capture and repatriation of the young boss before Canadian justice could really slow down this war of traffickers in Quebec. If Turmel can lead the battle against the Hells from Europe, he could likely do the same from his cell at the Quebec Detention Center.
“Photo courtesy, SPVQ”
Diplomacy and bureaucracy
Procedures with Interpol can get bogged down in bureaucratic or political mazes, according to our sources. “Everything goes through the federal government,” recalls one of them, emphasizing the capital importance of the good diplomatic relations that Canada maintains with the countries where the fugitives are hiding, as well as the important role played by the federal ministry. of Justice in Ottawa. Asked about this file, the ministry refrained from commenting.
- Listen to the press review commented by Alexandre Dubé via QUB :
The Magnotta case
The infamous Luka Rocco Magnotta, convicted of killing and dismembering a student in the Côte-des-Neiges district of Montreal, was labeled with a “red notice” in record time – less than two days – and captured in Berlin in less than a week on the run in 2012. The same day the Montreal police discovered the victim’s remains, the headquarters of the Conservative Party of Canada in Ottawa received a package containing a foot, as well as threatening messages to the location of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, which the killer himself had posted after the murder. No wonder Interpol quickly got involved in the matter, according to our sources.
“Archive photo, AFP”
Not a guarantee of success
Interpol’s “Red Notice” does not guarantee that a notorious fugitive will be found or captured abroad. For almost 23 years now, authorities have been trying to locate Hells Angels David “Wolf” Carroll, who lived in Morin-Heights, in the Laurentians. Now 71, the biker fled Canada just before the Spring 2001 operation that decimated the Nomads chapter of fallen Hells leader Maurice “Mom” Boucher, of which he was a part. Since then, Canadian authorities have been informed that the biker has been seen in many countries. Charges of murder, conspiracy, drug trafficking and gangsterism still weigh against him.
Hells Angels Nomads chapter David Carroll, dressed in a white polo shirt with his left hand in his pants pocket, photographed as he looks at the brand new Harley Davidson that fellow Nomads René Charlebois (with tie) just received grise), during the latter’s wedding reception, on August 5, 2000, in Contrecoeur, on the property of their former leader Maurice “Mom” Boucher. Carroll fled the country six months later, just before the Spring 2001 police operation.
“Courtesy photo”
The Hells tasted it
The Hells Angels, to whom Turmel’s gang has been making life difficult for nearly a year in the capital region, include several Quebec members who themselves were apprehended abroad with the help of Interpol. This was the case for around ten Hells who had fled the country before the wave of arrests during Operation SharQc, where almost all of the gang’s members were charged with murder in 2009. Among others, Martin Robert, now considered the most influential member of the gang in Quebec, was captured in Mexico after nine months on the run. As for Michel “L’Animal” Lajoie-Smith, who then controlled part of the drug market in Laval, he took refuge in Panama where he was able to hide for three years before being recaptured.
Archive photo, QMI Agency