A three-bedroom East Vancouver home with a brick fireplace, finished basement and private back deck is on the market for sale. But there is nothing to worry. The Hell’s Angels death’s-head logo has been removed.
The home at 3598 East Georgia Street is one of three former Hells Angels clubhouses being sold. The Hells Angels are now owned by the British Columbia government.
BC Assessment is asking $1.52 million for the East Vancouver home. The other two homes are located in Kelowna and Nanaimo. The two houses also include $15.5 million worth of cash, cars, houses, luxury purses and drones seized over the past 17 years for alleged involvement in the crime. However, its former owner was not found guilty.
The government has been touting civil forfeiture as a way to crack down on organized crime. However, civil liberties advocates and organizations say it amounts to punishing someone like a criminal without a real criminal process.
Phil Tuttle, executive director of the Office of Civil Forfeitors, said the 2009 court ruling, known as the Chatterjee decision, means that the statute created for criminal proceedings is valid. As such, seizure of biker clubhouses is also legal. I obey the law. This law is placed before us. The decision made regarding the Hells Angels is final.
