Case of gang hit resolved 9
Trial of 3 men in 2011 Kelowna shooting that killed gangster Jonathan Bacon ends in plea deal
The case of a high-profile shooting that took place in the middle of a summer day seven years ago in downtown Kelowna finally came to an end this year.
Jason McBride, Michael Jones and Jujhar Khun-Khun were arrested in February 2013 and charged with the first-degree murder of gangster Jonathan Bacon, and with the attempted murder of Hells Angel Larry Amero, Independent Soldier James Riach, Leah Hadden-Watts and Lyndsey Black.
The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, which led the investigation, called this case one of the largest and most complex investigations in B.C.’s history.
The trial by judge alone started in May 2017 and went on hiatus in October of that year to accommodate witness-protection issues.
However, the trial did not resume until a plea deal was reached this past spring.
In May, the Crown and defence reached a deal for the accused to plead guilty to lesser charges and presented a joint submission for sentencing.
McBride pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the killing of Bacon and the attempted murder of Amero, Riach, Hadden-Watts and Black.
Jones and Khun-Khun pleaded guilty to conspiring together with McBride, Sukh Dhak and others to commit the murders of Amero, Riach and Bacon.
Justice Allan Betton accepted the joint submission.
He sentenced McBride to life in prison without eligibility for parole for 18 years.
Jones and Khun-Khun each were sentenced to 18 years in prison.
With credit for time served, Jones had 10 years, two months and 15 days left to serve, while Khun-Khun had eight years left to serve at the time of sentencing.
Khun-Khun was given more credit, as he was hospitalized for around four months while incarcerated.
He survived targeted shootings in 2011 and 2013, but has some permanent injuries as a result.
Betton ruled Jones and Khun-Khun must serve half their remaining sentences prior to being eligible for parole.
On Aug. 14, 2011, at 2:38 p.m., a Ford Explorer pulled up beside a Porsche Cayenne in the Delta Grand hotel driveway.
From the driver’s-side rear-passenger seat, an unnamed person began shooting an automatic rifle at the occupants of the SUV, which contained Bacon, Amero, Riach, Hadden-Watts and Black.
McBride, followed by Manny Hairan, exited the Ford Explorer and both began shooting at the occupants of the Porsche.
McBride used a semi-automatic rifle while Hairan, who was killed in 2013, used a pistol.
Jones was identified as the driver of the Ford Explorer. The third shooter was never identified.
Throughout the trial, the court heard from 80 witnesses, many of whom were civilians caught up in the daytime shooting.
“The conspiracy to kill these individuals . . . had incredible risk to all the other bystanders that were in the area,” Crown prosecutor Dave Ruse said during his sentencing submission.