The British Columbia government has launched a new legal offensive against the Hells Angels, filing a civil lawsuit aimed at seizing three more of the motorcycle club's properties across the province.
Targeting the Assets of Organized Crime
This latest action, filed by the B.C. director of civil forfeiture in B.C. Supreme Court, targets clubhouses belonging to the gang's Mission chapter, the Hardside chapter in Surrey, and the Haney chapter in Pitt Meadows. The lawsuit alleges these properties have been financed and maintained using funds derived from criminal activity.
Public Safety Minister Nina Krieger stated the move is a key part of the government's ongoing effort to target and undercut organized crime. "Organized crime has no place in B.C., and our government has been working with focus and resolve to go after gangs and remove the profits of criminal activities," Krieger said in a news release.
Building on Previous Successes
The lawsuit marks a continued escalation in the province's use of civil forfeiture laws against the biker gang. It comes just two years after the government successfully seized three other Hells Angels clubhouses in Nanaimo, Kelowna, and Vancouver's East End.
That previous case concluded in 2023 when the Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear an appeal from the Hells Angels. Since that legal defeat, all three of those seized properties have been sold or demolished.
Manny Mann, Chief Officer of the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU), B.C.'s anti-gang unit, emphasized the collaborative approach. "By combining investigative expertise with civil-forfeiture tools, we are able to remove assets that undermine community safety," Mann said.
Expanding the Crackdown on Clubhouses
In a related action, the provincial government is also pursuing the forfeiture of a clubhouse in Campbell River owned by the Devil's Army, a group affiliated with the Hells Angels. The property is owned by Richard Alexander, a founding member of the Devil's Army who was convicted of murder in 2023.
This legal push occurs against a shifting landscape in B.C.'s outlaw motorcycle club scene. A new club, Satan's Choice, has recently moved into the province, establishing chapters in Abbotsford and Whiskey Creek, near Qualicum.
The latest civil forfeiture lawsuits represent a significant step in the province's strategy to dismantle the financial infrastructure of organized crime groups by permanently seizing their assets.
