WINNIPEG - A Crown prosecutor has told a Winnipeg courtroom that a gang war is going on in the city and that it's reached a fever pitch.
Mike Desautels made the comment Monday during a bail hearing for a high-ranking member of the Rock Machine, who is accused of breaching conditions of his previous bail and probation.
The Crown is fighting to keep Jean Paul Beaumont in custody, citing the ongoing battle between the Rock Machine and their rivals, the Redlined Support Crew.
Desautels filed a detailed report on Winnipeg's gang situation -- authored by members of the police organized crime unit -- to boost his argument that public safety is at stake.
The Hells Angels created the Redlined Support Crew last year to stand up to other criminal networks that might muscle in on their former drug turf.
At the top of that list was the Rock Machine, which waged war with the Hells Angels in Quebec during the 1990s, but has never had much of a presence in Manitoba until recently.
