VANCOUVER—There is “overwhelming evidence” to prove that two men participated in the murders of six people as part of a dispute between a violent gang and its rivals in the Vancouver-area drug trade, a Crown lawyer told the men’s trial Wednesday.
Cody Haevischer and Matthew Johnston are each charged with conspiracy and six counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of six men, including two innocent bystanders, who were shot in a highrise condo in Surrey in October 2007.
The Crown alleges Haevischer and Johnston set out to kill a rival drug trafficker under the direction of their bosses in the Red Scorpions gang, but that five others were also murdered to eliminate potential witnesses.
Crown counsel Mark Levitz said the trial has heard a mountain of circumstantial evidence—including surveillance videos, forensic evidence and testimony from former gang members—that can only lead to one conclusion: Haevischer and Johnston participated in the killings.
“The Crown has presented overwhelming evidence to prove that Haevischer and Johnston were among the co-perpetrators of these murders,” Levitz told a B.C. Supreme Court judge on the first day of closing submissions.
The Crown’s theory has been that the leaders of the Red Scorpions gang, Michael Le and Jamie Bacon, decided to kill a rival trafficker named Corey Lal, who had failed to pay a $100,000 “tax.”
The Crown contends Haevischer, Johnston, and a third man known only as Person X went to Lal’s apartment in Surrey, where they encountered Lal and five other people, including a fireplace repairman and a neighbour with no connection to gangs or drugs.
Haevischer shot three people and Person X shot the other three, the Crown alleges. Person X has already pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
Le was also on trial alongside Haevischer and Johnston until he entered a surprise guilty plea last year in a deal that saw him testify against his former co-accused.
Levitz said Haevischer and Johnston both had the motive, means and opportunity to carry out the killings, and he noted that former associates told the trial both men admitted their involvement.
He pointed to testimony from Le and other former associates, who told the court that Bacon imposed the tax on Lal because he had a “beef” with the man. Bacon then insisted Lal be killed to ensure the gang’s threats would be taken seriously and to bolster its “fearsome” reputation, Levitz said.
As members of the gang, Haevischer and Johnston had an obligation to carry out the orders, the Crown lawyer said.
Levitz said surveillance videos and the testimony of several witnesses documented the movements of Haevischer, Johnston and Person X on the day of the killings, with the trio leaving Haevischer’s apartment shortly before the murders and returning shortly after.
A Red Scorpions associate who lived in the same building as Lal testified that he gave Johnston his key fob, which was used to enter the building minutes before the Crown alleges the murders occurred.
Le testified that Haevischer and Johnston told him separately about the killings. Le said Haevischer told him that he shot three victims, while Person X shot the other three.
Person Y
Another associate, known only as Person Y, testified that he initially planned to participate but he didn’t want to work with Johnston.
Person Y later became a police informant and wore a recording device during conversations with Johnston. The court heard that Johnston told Person Y “I watched” while mimicking a gun with his hand.
Person Y also testified that he gave a handgun to Person X on the afternoon of the murders. A gun matching Person Y’s description of the firearm was found at the murder scene with Person Y’s DNA on it.
The victims included fireplace repairman Ed Schellenberg, 55, and 22-year-old building resident Chris Mohan, who were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Mohan’s mother, Eileen, has been a constant fixture at the trial since the case began in late September, including when crime scene photos of her son’s body were shown to the court.
She said she feels her son’s absence every day.
“Yesterday was Canada Day and everybody was out there enjoying things with their family, and I don’t have my son with me,” she said, her voice breaking.
“The healing has been a part of it, but every day is a day that you don’t have Christopher with me.”
Bacon is also charged with conspiracy and one count of first-degree murder and will be tried separately. Le is expected to testify at his trial, as well.
Another man, Sophon Sek, is awaiting trial for manslaughter.
The other victims were Lal, his brother Michael, Eddie Narong and Ryan Bartolomeo, all of whom had links to gangs and drugs.
