Five arrested in Canada over biker-linked deaths

Police have arrested five people on murder charges for one of Canada’s worst mass killings.

They said the deaths of eight men found on an isolated farm were part of “an internal cleansing” of a motorcycle gang.

The arrests were made at a modest, two-storey farmhouse about six miles from where the eight men were found shot dead in four vehicles scattered in a wooded field in Shedden, Ontario, about 90 miles north-east of Detroit.

Investigators did not believe a biker gang war was imminent.

“This is an isolated incident with ties to the Bandidos,” said Detective Ross Bingley of the Ontario Provincial Police, describing the killings as “an internal cleansing”.

Police said Bandidos member Wayne Kellestine, 56, would be charged with eight counts of first-degree murder.

Also arrested and charged with eight counts of murder were Eric Niessen, 45; Kerry Morris, 56; Frank Mather, 32; and Brett Gardiner, 21. The four were not members of the Bandidos.

All five suspects were either from Monkton, Ontario, or the Dutton-Dunwich area, a small farming community in south-western Ontario between London and the US border. Police said Gardiner had no fixed address.

The gangland-style killings make up 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.

Murray and Brenda Silcox, owners of Palmer’s general goods at the only intersection in Shedden, a farming community of only 300 people, said while residents were stunned by the murders, few knew the suspects or the victims found on Saturday morning.

“It’s like somebody else’s world dropped on ours,” said Brenda Silcox, whose family store has been in business for 85 years. “It would be different if it were your neighbour, or somebody you know.”

Police Detective Don Bell also described the shootings as an “internal cleansing” within the gang 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,” Bell said.

The victims who were either full or associate members of the gang were listed as George Jesso, 52; George Kriarakis, 28; John Muscedere, 48; Luis Manny Raposo, 41; Francesco Salerajno, 43; Paul Sinopoli, 30; and Michael Trotta, 31.

Victim Jamie Flanz, 37, was named as a “prospective” member. All were from Ontario.

Bell said US intelligence indicated the killings were internal to Canada and not related to any rift with American members of the Bandidos.

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.

“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.

Police found the bodies after a call from the property owners. Mary and Russell Steele said the vehicles were not there when they took the road home the night before.