Top Hells Angels' appeals dismissed

Hells Angels kingpin Walter Stadnick.

The Quebec Court of Appeal dismissed Tuesday the appeals of Hells Angels leaders Donald (Pup) Stockford and Walter (Nurget) Stadnick.

In June 2004, Stadnick, 56, and Stockford, 47, both of Hamilton, Ont., were convicted of five charges, including conspiracy to commit murder, drug trafficking and gangsterism.

They were each sentenced to 20 years in prison for their role in Quebec's bloody biker war.

Stadnick and Stockford were among the last of those arrested during a massive police sweep in 2001 to face trial. Stadnick was earlier acquitted of 13 first-degree murder charges and three counts of attempted murder.

Close to Mom

The men were part of the elite Nomads chapter of the Hells Angels in Montreal. The Nomads were led by kingpin Maurice (Mom) Boucher, who's serving a life sentence for ordering the murders of two prison guards.

Hard time

With time already served, Stadnick has eight years left in his sentence, while Stockford has about 8� years left. With time served, the pair will have spent at least a decade behind bars before they can be released. Similar cases suggest they will likely have to serve two-thirds of their sentence before being released.

Drug kingpins

Financial records taken from the Hells Angels' drug-trafficking accounts showed that in 2000, Stockford and Stadnick spent more than $11 million to purchase cocaine and hashish as part of a drug consortium called La Table.

- With Files from The Canadian Press -