Drug bust lands Vancouver gangsters in Manila jail
Wolf Pack members had been operating in the Philippines for several months after fleeing B. C. amid gang wars
After a dramatic arrest in the Philippines Wednesday, Vancouver gangster Barry Espadilla quipped on his Facebook page that jail in Manila “is actually a lot better than jail over there ( in B. C.).”
He even took a shot at North Fraser Pre- trial, where he has been held several times while awaiting trial on charges ranging from manslaughter to firearms offences.
Espadilla and his Independent Soldiers’ gang- mate James Riach, both 31, are facing possible life sentences after a major drug bust in Manila by the country’s National Bureau of Investigation.
The NBI raided three luxury suites linked to the B. C. men and found a drug lab and large amounts of cocaine, ecstasy and methamphetamine.
The Philippines’ Justice Secretary Leila de Lima told reporters that she was informed by the NBI of the raid at 3 a. m. local time.
She said local authorities believe the Canadians had been operating in the country for seven months and that the probe began about two months ago after the NBI received a tip.
Both men left B. C. for the Philippines last year in part because they were targeted in a gang war that has been raging for years.
Riach and Espadilla are part of the Wolf Pack, a coalition made up of some IS members, some Red Scorpions and some Hells Angels.
Riach was in a vehicle with Scorpion leader Jon Bacon and HA member Larry Amero when it was targeted in a Kelowna shooting in 2011. Bacon was killed, Amero wounded and Riach escaped unharmed.
Also in the vehicle was Leah HaddenWatts, who was paralyzed. She is the niece of the president of the Hells Angels Haney chapter.
Her sister, Tara Hadden- Watts, is in the Philippines with Espadilla and their young son. News reports indicate that she was also picked up by police Wednesday, though does not appear to have been charged.
Another Metro Vancouver gangster with a string of convictions here, Ali Shirazi, was arrested in one of the apartments where Riach was found.
De Lima was quoted in news reports as saying the drugs had been smuggled from Mexico and were being processed by Riach and Espadilla to be distributed in Filipino night clubs and bars.
Const. Doug Spencer, a BC Transit cop and gang expert, said Wednesday that he’s known both Riach and Espadilla for years.
“They are very active gang members involved in the drug trade in Vancouver,” said Spencer, who does antigang presentations for the Odd Squad society.
“Because of the contracts on their lives over the last couple of years, the kind of bloodshed that has gone on, they thought they couldn’t continue activities here where they are known, so they’ve gone abroad where they think they’re not known.”
Spencer said the pair will likely get sentences in the Philippines that are much longer than what they would have faced in B. C.
“It is another bad decision in their lives and now it’s going to have 10 times the ramifications than it would here,” he said.
Foreign Affairs spokesman Mathieu Roy said in an emailed statement: “We are aware of reports that two Canadians have been arrested in the Philippines. Consular officials are liaising with local authorities to gather additional information. Consular services will be provided as required.”
Both Riach and Espadilla have long criminal records in B. C.
Riach was convicted in 2010 of possession and careless storage of a loaded .45- calibre semi- automatic Glock pistol found under his mattress. Espadilla was convicted only of heroin and cocaine possession.
Both were acquitted of more serious gun charges after an arsenal of weapons was found in their luxury Yaletown condo.
Espadilla has a manslaughter conviction as well.
The Wolf Pack has faced a series of blows recently. Red Scorpion leader Matt Campbell was murdered in Abbotsford earlier this month. Another associate named Nick Kljajic was shot and wounded inside a Burnaby restaurant last week.
And Amero, the high- profile Hells Angel, has been sitting in a Montreal jail cell awaiting trial on cocaine smuggling charges.