Alberta bikers now face murder charges
Three Alberta bikers arrested after a Hells Angels international meeting and parade in Greece last month are now facing murder charges.
The trio — two from the Hells Angels Westridge chapter and one with the Nomads in Red Deer — were originally charged with attempted murder after the June 7 beating of a Greek man in Corfu.
The victim was taken off life support and died June 27, according to his sister. His funeral was held on Thursday.
Sources in Greece and Canada said the accused have now had their charges upgraded to the more serious murder counts.
Dustin Swanson, a prospect in the Edmonton-based Westridge chapter, is charged with intentional homicide. Fellow Westridge member Nick Dragich and Brent Koziak of the Nomads chapter in Red Deer are both now charged with “collaboration” homicide for allegedly assisting Swanson in the beating.
The sister, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation, told The Vancouver Sun that her brother had gone into a friend’s restaurant early June 7 to “grab a bite” after visiting his recently widowed mother in her village.
When he came out of the restaurant, one of the bikers — wearing his Hells Angels vest — was sitting on the victim’s motorcycle. Two other Hells Angels were beside him.
“My brother told them, ‘Sorry, you’re on my bike, and I want to go home,’ ” she said. “They said, ‘OK’. But when my brother went to his bike and leaned in, they attacked him from behind. After the first hit, he fell on the ground. Then they started kicking him in the head. All the witnesses saw it, but they are afraid for their lives.”
The three bikers were arrested a short time later, covered with blood, according to the sister. She said the family is devastated at the loss of her 41-year-old brother, who had been the only remaining male in the family.
The Canadian government did not respond to a request for information on the upgraded charges.
Hells Angels spokesman Rick Ciarniello has not responded to an emailed interview request.