HA killer getting out of prison
Parole Board imposing special conditions on Rob Thomas, 56, who was convicted of killing Kelowna man Dain Phillips a decade ago
A former Hells Angel convicted of killing a Kelowna man a decade ago has to live in a halfway house and abide by other special conditions after being released from prison.
The Parole Board of Canada imposed the conditions on Rob Thomas, 56, before his recent statutory release. Inmates normally get released after completing two-thirds of their sentence.
In addition to limiting where Thomas can live, board member Harvey Silbernagel said the former biker must not consume drugs or alcohol, or associate with anyone involved in “criminal activity, substance abuse or gang activity.”
Thomas, then a full-patch member of the Hells Angels’ Kelowna chapter, pleaded guilty in 2014 to manslaughter for his part in the fatal beating of a local father, Dain Phillips, in June 2011.
Phillips had gone to a roadside meeting to try and resolve a dispute his sons had with associates of Norman Cocks, another Kelowna Hells Angel convicted in the slaying.
Phillips was jumped and beaten with a hammer and baseball bat. The 51-year-old died the next day in hospital.
“You threatened both the victim and his adult son, and then attacked the victim by striking him in the legs and head with a baseball bat,” Silbernagel said of Thomas. “Your co-convicted then joined the attack. Together, you continued to assault the victim while he was on the ground. Other males then joined the attack by kicking and punching the victim.”
The parole board member also quoted the judge who sentenced Thomas to 15 years minus-time served as saying, “it is clear from the facts that this is a very serious case … involving a brutal and determined attack with weapons on an unarmed man
who was attempting to resolve an ongoing dispute.”
Silbernagel does not name the Hells Angels, but says Thomas was “a member of an established international criminal organization, known to be involved in widespread violent crimes, drug dealing, trafficking in stolen goods, extortion, and prostitution.”
“You report leaving the gang in 2014, but file information states you remain ‘protective of the organization’, insisting that it is not criminally oriented,” he said.
He cited Thomas’ criminal record up to the fatal beating for “property crime, assault, use of weapons, drugs and driving.”
And he said Thomas had previously breached conditions when out on bail.
“You tried to leave the country while on bail in September 2005. On that occasion, you were wearing gang attire and this was in breach of a condition of your supervision,” he said.
“In July/August 2006, while under bail conditions prohibiting you from associating with other gang members, you were permitted to travel to the United States to attend a tattoo convention. You were stopped at the
border with other gang members upon return to Canada.”
The parole board decision said Thomas has accepted “some responsibility and express(ed) some remorse for your criminal actions.”
“However, you demonstrate little insight into your behaviour. You place blame on your victims and the circumstances at the time.
“You claimed to have acted in self-defence and disagree with official reports on file,” Silbernagel said.
During his time in custody, Thomas has gotten into trouble by establishing himself as “a heavy,” incurring institutional charges and “being verbally abusive to security staff when your cell was searched.”
“In February 2020, you were associated with an assault on the inmate next door to you,” Silbernagel said, adding that Thomas’ case management team indicated that he has “a tendency to intimidate and control interviews, and you become argumentative with authority figures when you feel challenged.”
But the board member also credited Thomas with taking courses, reconnecting with his Indigenous culture, and having strong family support.
Cocks, who remains a Hells Angel, was granted full parole in March 2020. Brothers Daniel and Matthew McRae and associate Anson Schell were also convicted of manslaughter in Phillips’ death.