es

 

 

fees to be shipped over, and are then
employed as drug runners and prostitutes
for the Big Circle Gang.

Police believe that Huang’s murder
was in relation to the Halloween slaying
of Hiep Quang Do, 51. Do is a confirmed
member of a Vietnamese gang that has
relations to the Big Circle Boys. Do
was killed at a Vietnamese restaurant in
Vancouver.

It is believed third war erupted after
the wounding of Gurmit Singh Dhak at
a restaurant on September 8. Dhak was
shot in the back. Dhak also. had a female
companion with him at the time of the
shooting, and she was shot four times
in the leg. Dhak is well known to police
as he was sent to jail back in 2003 for
shooting another man. He has also been
implicated in the murder of Doan Minh
Vu, 19, in 1999.

The fourth gang war is perhaps the
most publicized. On August 9, The
Fortune Happy restaurant was shot up
in the early hours of the morning. Two
people entered the eatery and shot and
killed two men, while six others were
injured.

An Elaborate Network
One aspect that makes it very difficult for
police to crack down on gang members

is the independent gangs that take
contract work for more prominent gangs.
An incredible 49 of them are currently
said to be in operation in Vancouver. The
most prominent independent gang is the
United Nations, or UN, gang. They are
an extremely vicious group composed
of ethnically diverse men in their early
to mid twenties. They are exceedingly
powerful in the East Vancouver drug
trade, and have roots in the Fraser
Valley, Chilliwack, and Abbotsford.
Feared throughout Canada, the UN gang
is very involved in the’ weapons trade,
making them incredibly dangerous and
powerful. They are known to have gone
to war with the Hells Angels, the world’s
most infamous biker gang.

All of the wars are believed to be over
‘Vancouver’s lucrative drug business.
Police are fearful that today’s image: of
gangsters. will rub off on youth. Gang
members have, the potential to make
thousands upon thousands of dollars,
have fancy homes and drive luxury
vehicles. For example, Ronal Shakeel
Raj, who was just murdered in the latest
gang homicide, had leased a Cadillac, a
Mercedes, and a new Lexus.

The Vancouver Police department
proclaimed that they have formed a
special gang unit within their department.

Mayor Sam Sullivan has said that he
believes the current police force is more
than up to the job of handling gangs, yet
he says that Ottawa needs to invest more
money into the VPD.

A regional gang task force that
would operate solely for the purpose of
dismantling and fighting gangs has been
established just recently. It is known as
the Violence Suppression Team (VST)
and began work on November 14. Top
officers are selected from municipalities
all over the Lower Mainland. Their
inaugural goals are to dismantle the
infamous Vancouver drug trade, which
is the foundation for many gangs in BC.
The new taskforce will not be forced to
comply with jurisdictional boundaries.

Experts have claimed that a major step
that needs to be taken in order to combat
gang violence is to have updated research
on prolific gangs, their members and
their known associates. At present time,
police have calculated that there may
be as many as 125 organized criminal
organizations currently operating in
British Columbia. ;

Perhaps the most important step that
is required to win the war on gangs is
education and prevention in the youth
stages. Police are determined to show
teenagers and children that gangs lead

- Joday’s post-secondary

 

«<<

FPSE

The BC government's proposed changes to our
post-secondary education system don’t add up.
Students won’t get access to the skills and knowledge they

need to get ahead because the government's Campus 2020

Plan fails to fix the key problems of affordability and access.
Our students deserve better. Their futures depend on it. 99

POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION

gts wa eli ites
BETTER FUTURES.

Tell Premier Campbell to invest in BC's future.

Federation of
Post-Secondary Educators

Find out more. Ge. wwww.takeaction.fpse.ca

only to death, and that the lives some of
them lead, are fueled primarily through
the suffering of others, as gangs will
forever be linked to drugs. It is believed
by many that the education of the young
is the only long-term solution to the

 

WWW.WORKING