Guilty of all charges in Surrey Six case
VANCOUVER • Applause rang out in B.C. Supreme Court Thursday as two Red Scorpion gangsters were convicted of six counts of first-degree murder and one of conspiracy in B.C.’s worst gangland massacre, the 2007 Surrey Six slayings.
Cody Haevischer and Matthew Johnston showed little emotion as Justice Catherine Wedge said the evidence proved their involvement in the executions of rival drug dealer Corey Lal, his brother Michael, associates Ryan Bartolomeo and Eddie Narong, and bystanders Ed Schellenberg and Chris Mohan.
The judge accepted both accused and a third Scorpion, dubbed Person X, were part of a murderous plot hatched by the gang’s leaders to kill Corey Lal, a 22-year-old who had been selling drugs on their turf.
She noted all six victims “were shot to death while lying defenceless on the floor” of an apartment in Surrey’s Balmoral Tower on Oct. 19, 2007.
Judge Wedge rejected defence arguments there had never been a plan to kill Corey Lal, but only to rob him, after he refused to pay the gang $100,000 for peddling drugs on their territory.
“In light of the crime scene evidence, it is implausible to suggest that the trio went to Suite 1505 for the limited purpose of robbing Mr. Lal,” the judge said.
“Had that been the plan, they could simply have abandoned it when they discovered others in the apartment with Mr. Lal. Instead, they executed six people.”
Each time, Judge Wedge announced a guilty verdict, relatives and supporters of the victims clapped.
The only relative to speak to the media outside court was Eileen Mohan, whose son Christopher was on his way to his basketball game from their 15 th-floor apartment when he got dragged into the death suite and shot.
“Today is a great day for Christopher. I have been waiting for seven years for this day and it has come and I am relieved. And I know that my son is smiling down today and it’s a good feeling,” she said.
The judge accepted the testimony of key Crown witnesses — known only as KM, Person Y and DY — all criminals formerly linked to the notorious gang.
“I am satisfied that Person Y, KM and DY intended to be truthful in their testimony before the court on the material matters going to the issue of whether the two accused committed the offences with which they are charged,” she said.
“Much of their evidence was corroborated by other evidence from independent sources. Accordingly, I have accepted most material aspects of their evidence.”
Y, an admitted killer who was arguably the linchpin of the Crown’s case, testified Johnston confessed his role in the murders. He also recorded the accused making incriminating comments about the murders.
KM, Haevischer ’s f or - mer girlfriend, testified she helped Johnston and Person X clean the guns before the murders and Haevischer later wrote on a whiteboard “six people died.”
DY , who sold drugs for the Red Scorpions, testified he gave Johnston an electronic key fob to get into the Balmoral about two hours before the murders.
But Judge Wedge rejected most of the evidence of star witness and Red Scorpion founder Michael Le, who struck a plea bargain midtrial and agreed to testify for the Crown.
“Mr. Le’s plea agreement created the risk that he would minimize his own role in the conspiracy so that the Crown would drop t he murder charge against him; having committed to this version of events, Mr. Le would then be obligated to testify in accordance with it,” she explained.
“The plea agreement also created the risk that Mr. Le would endeavour to make himself valuable to the Crown by delivering direct evidence of the accused’s involvement in the offences charged.”
She said he minimized his role in the plot and she could not accept his evidence both Haevischer and Johnston later confessed their roles in the murders.
Le got a 12-year-sentence, minus time served, and is eligible for parole in December.
Haevischer and Johnston face an automatic life sentence with no possibility of parole for 25 years.
They have already filed an abuse of process motion, meaning they will argue that their Charter rights were violated during the police investigation and the case against them should be thrown out.