8 Found slain near London, Ontario

[Miranda]

8 Men Found Slain on Canadian Farmland

SHEDDEN, Ontario - The bodies of eight men were found inside four vehicles abandoned in a remote wooded area on a farmer's property in rural southwestern Canada.

Police were not disclosing many details about the deaths in rural Ontario, about 20 miles southwest of the city of London, except to say that four vehicles were involved, including a tow truck, and that the dead were all men. They were found Saturday morning.

"We're not in a position to reveal how they were murdered," Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Dave Rektor said.

Police found the bodies after a call from the property owner. An aerial view showed the vehicles parked within 650 feet of each other, with the bodies still inside.

The Ontario coroner and the attorney general's office declined comment.

A minivan was discovered in a field about 65 feet off a dirt road. About 300 feet away, a tow truck was found parked on the shoulder with a small silver car hooked to the back. A fourth car was parked in a clearing about 300 feet along the dirt road. The hatch was wide open.

Mary and Russell Steele, who own the property around which the cars were parked, told Global News that the vehicles weren't there when they took the road home the night before at around 8:30 p.m.

They said they called police Saturday morning after looking inside one of the vehicles and not being able to see anything because of a blanket covering the back window.

"We didn't see anybody in them, so we just phoned the cops with the licence plate numbers," Russell Steele said.

"The police opened opened the back and I could see forms," his wife said. "I couldn't tell, but immediately in my mind I thought, 'these are bodies.'"

Source: Associated Press

I enjoy visiting London a lot in the Summer, this is beyond odd.

[pharoh]

If anyone asks, I wasn't in London when this happend..........

:fear

[ZhukovCodeslinger]

.... its not a very good day to be a bad guy in canada.

Note to self... If I ever join a biker gang that only has 12 members, do not start a war with the Hell's angels... thats just stupid.

[Marblez]

Mass Slaying Of Bikers Called Gang's 'Internal Cleansing'

POSTED: 5:52 am MDT April 11, 2006

SHEDDEN, Ontario -- Five men were charged in the slayings of eight people who were found on an isolated farm in Canada over the weekend, part of what police called an "internal cleansing" of a motorcycle gang.

The mass killings were Canada's worst in a decade, but police did not believe a biker gang war was imminent and insisted there was little reason for public fear.

"I think this is an isolated incident and I wouldn't expect to see any significant fallout from it," Police Detective Don Bell said.

Police said they made the arrests at a farmhouse near where the men were found shot to death Saturday in a wooded field in Shedden, about 90 miles northeast of Detroit.

Most of the victims were either full or associate members of the Bandidos motorcycle gang, police said. One of the victims was a prospective member.

Those arrested and charged with eight counts of murder were Bandidos member Wayne Kellestine, 56, and non-members Eric Niessen, 45; Kerry Morris, 56; Frank Mather, 32; and Brett Gardiner, 21. All five suspects were from southeastern Ontario.

Murray and Brenda Silcox, owners of a general goods store in the farming community of only 300 people, said while residents were stunned by the slayings, few knew the suspects or the victims.

"It's like somebody else's world dropped on ours," Brenda Silcox said. "It would be different if it were your neighbor, or somebody you know."

The victims were identified as Victim Jamie Flanz, 37; George Jesso, 52; George Kriarakis, 28; John Muscedere, 48; Luis Manny Raposo, 41; Francesco Salerajno, 43; Paul Sinopoli, 30; and Michael Trotta, 31. All were from Ontario.

Bell said U.S. intelligence indicates the killings were internal to Canada and not related to any rift with American members of the Bandidos. He said the Canadian arm is comprised of former members of Quebec gangs, such as the Popeyes and Rock Machine.

Police showed off two black leather Bandidos vests with a caricature of a bandit wearing a sombrero and holding a handgun, and said the public should note if they came across bikers wearing the garb.

AP Image

Scene of mass killings where eight men were found on an isolated farm in Shedden, Ontario, Canada.

"It should be noted that these men are criminals," Bell said. "They are not the motorcycle enthusiasts they portray themselves to be."

The rural area where the bodies were found has had problems with motorcycle gangs in the past, but is generally considered low-crime compared to other parts of Canada, in particular Quebec, where biker violence is more common.

"It's not uncommon for organized crime groups, bikers or anyone else to eliminate some of their members. There are disputes off all kinds, power struggles," law enforcement consultant Chris Mathers said.

Mathers, a former undercover Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, said the Bandidos and Hells Angels have absorbed other biker groups in Canada over the years and he doubted there would be retaliation.

The gangland-style killings were the biggest mass murder in Canada since Mark Chahal went on a shooting rampage in 1996 in Vernon, British Columbia, killing nine people, including his estranged wife and himself.

Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.