A police informant in the Project Forseti raids says a 36-year-old Hells Angels member facing a drug trafficking charge was in on a plan to sell cocaine.
Noel Harder, an informant in Project Forseti and at least one other investigation, told a Saskatoon court Monday Rob Allen was involved in a plan to bring cocaine to Saskatoon from Hells Angels in Ontario.
Allen would indirectly supply the drugs for Harder to sell and would receive a $5,000 cut for every kilogram sold, Harder said.
Allen is a full-patch member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, according to an agreed statement of facts in the case.
Harder told court he met Allen in the summer of 2013. He became an informant in 2014 — six months after being pulled over by police while transporting guns — and said he was told by police to keep the plan in place to sell drugs indirectly supplied by Allen.
Crown prosecutor Douglas Curliss presented text messages between Harder and Allen that outlined the plan. Court also heard audio recordings between the two. Harder filled in the blanks in the exchanges because the pair used code words and hand gestures when talking about illegal activity.
Allen, who was arrested alongside 13 others after Saskatoon police and RCMP raided nearly 20 properties across Saskatchewan and Alberta in January 2015 as part of Project Forseti, smirked and shook his head during parts of Harder’s testimony.
Harder testified there was one attempt to get the cocaine to Saskatoon in September 2014, but the person in charge of transporting it owed money and was robbed. The cocaine never made it to the city. Allen, who put up half of the payment for the transaction, lost his money, according to Harder.
Curliss said, while the transaction never took place, an offer to traffic drugs is considered illegal.
Allen’s trial is expected to last three days.
Close to 200 charges were laid following the Project Forseti raids. The investigation into organized crime led to the seizure of more than 200 guns and $8 million worth of drugs.
