Alleged Hells Angel surrenders
An alleged Hells Angel from Ontario surrendered himself to authorities at the Montreal courthouse Wednesday morning after being sought for more than a week in connection with a large drug bust carried out by Quebec police last week.
Louis Matte, 52, made a brief appearance before a Quebec Court judge during a hearing where a series of conditions were imposed on him if he wants to be released. One of the conditions required him to make a $20,000 deposit. He was taken into custody and will be detained until he can meet all the requirements of the conditions.
Police tried to locate Matte last week when dozens of arrests were made in Project Objection, an investigation by the Escouade nationale de répression contre le crime organisé (ENRCO), a collection of investigators from different police forces based in Quebec who specifically investigate organized crime.
During a press conference last week, the Sûreté du Québec alleged that Matte is a full-patch member of the Hells Angels’ South chapter based just south of Montreal. The SQ also alleged that he ran a drugtrafficking network based in Ontario. A warrant for his arrest lists a series of charges filed against him and three other members of the biker gang — Stéphane Maheu, 47, Michel (Sky) Langlois, 71, a founding member of the first Hells Angels chapter established in Canada, and Daniel-André Giroux, 47.
Matte is charged with being part of a conspiracy, along with two of the other Hells Angels and seven other people, to traffic in “several” different types of drugs. He is also charged with trafficking in methamphetamine between June 1, 2017, and April 24.
According to the warrant, the police believed that Matte resided south of Montreal in St-Charlessur-Richelieu. But on Wednesday, Matte’s lawyer, Gilles Doré, told the court that Matte lives in Vankleek Hill, Ont., a small town near the Quebec border.
“My client heard about the bust, for lack of a better word, and tried to contact me immediately to ask what he should do,” Doré said, while adding he was busy with a case at the Sorel courthouse last week and couldn’t meet with Matte.
He said that Matte surrendered “as soon as it was possible.”
Matte is also not allowed to leave Canada while his case is pending and he is not allowed to possess firearms.