Fugitive Vancouver gangster demands ‘evidence’ against him in extradition case


Conor D’Monte, detained in Puerto Rico, says in new court filing what BC anti-gang agency has provided in murder case against him ‘does not contain physical or digital evidence of any kind tying’ him to a crime

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Accused gang killer Conor D’Monte wants police in both Canada and the US to provide his lawyer with the evidence they’ve collected against the United Nations gang and from three former members-turned-Crown witnesses against him.

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D’Monte, who was captured in Puerto Rico in February, said in a new court filing that what BC’s anti-gang agency has provided so far in the murder case against him “does not contain physical or digital evidence of any kind tying” him to a crime

The Vancouver native was charged in January 2011 with murder and conspiracy in the February 2009 slaying of Red Scorpion gangster Kevin LeClair and a plot to kill Scorpion brothers Jonathan, Jarrod and Jamie Bacon.

After 11 years on the run, D’Monte was arrested Feb. 25 in a suburb of San Juan with a firearm in his possession. He had been living there for years under the alias Johnny Williams, volunteering for a honeybee charity and playing beach tennis almost daily.

Canada formally applied for his extradition last month.

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But his public defender Andrew S. McCutcheon said in his motion for more disclosure that very little information has been provided in the extradition application.

“Distilled to its core, the evidence underlying extradition consists of a single document: a redacted affidavit provided by a police officer, Terrence Murphy, containing his ‘summarized’ understanding of information purportedly provided by three cooperating witnesses,” McCutcheon said in the motion filed Friday.

“In other words, involving multiple levels of hearsay and interpretation. The extradition package does not contain physical or digital evidence of any kind involving Mr. D’Monte to a crime. And yet, the Court is asked to approve the physical seizure and transportation of Mr. D’Monte’s body to another country.”

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McCutcheon said his own research found that the three ex-gang witnesses mentioned in Murphy’s affidavit “suffer from serious credibility issues.”

“The limited investigation conducted by the defense so far has unearthed a mountain of evidence showing Witnesses 1 and 3 and, most importantly, Witness 2, suffer from extreme bias, motive to fabricate, opportunity to fabricate, and inconsistencies or falsities in their statements, ” he said. “The majority of this information was deliberately omitted from the Murphy affidavit.”

He said “the witnesses collectively received financial compensation, benefits in their sentences, and immunity for various criminal acts, among other promises, rewards, and inducements. They may also have received placement in witness protection.”

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“For all these reasons, it is critical that Mr. D’Monte and this court have access to materials which would clarify the statements of cooperating witnesses and the benefits they received. This information is necessary for this court to adequately evaluate the credibility of the only evidence supporting the need for extradition. In order to acquire this important information, limited discovery is requested.”

While D’Monte has been identified as a leader of the UN after the arrest of founder Clay Roueche in May 2008, McCutcheon pointed to a 2009 police statement that identified another UN member as the leader at that time.

“The affidavit alleges that following Roueche’s arrest, D’Monte was chosen as the leader of the UN Gang and escalated attempts against the Bacon brothers and their associates,” the public defender said. “These are extremely murky assertions undone by statements made by Canadian law enforcement members themselves and information released through the media.”

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The lawyer is seeking details of immunity agreements signed by the witnesses and any benefits they received, as well as any prior misconduct by them. And he wants “copies of Blackberry messages or other digital evidence referenced in the Murphy affidavit and supporting the statements of the cooperating witnesses.”

He also wants US authorities to turn over evidence they collected on the UN gang while investigating Roueche, who was convicted in Washington state in 2009 of drug smuggling and money laundering.

“Due process requires this court be allowed a fair opportunity to evaluate the property of extradition in this proceeding,” he said.

McCutcheon does not address the fact his client was living under a false identity or provide any information about how D’Monte has supported himself since leaving Canada in 2011.

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