| Normand Whissel, born on August 29, 1954, was described by police as one of the leaders of the Bandidos Montreal operations. He allegedly headed a drug network in and around the Laurentian town of Mont Laurier.
As a high ranking member of the club, Whissel ranked high on the list of the Hells Angels, who battled the Bandidos in a brutal war for drug turf. Whissel was injured by gunfire during an attempt on his life in January 2002. Two months later, on March 14, an innocent bystander mistaken for the Bandidos leader was gunned down at a gas station in St. Eustache. |
| Normand Whissel |
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| Yves Albert, a 34-year-old father of two with no gang ties, drove a car that resembled Whissel’s Intrepid and bore a similar license plate. The red Voyageur used by the killers was later found in flames in Laval.
The Bandidos operations were crippled in June 2002, when police swooped down and arrested over 60 members and associates of the gang in raids across the province and Ontario. Whissel was charged with an assortment of crimes, including plotting to murder members of the Hells Angels and their affiliate clubs. Also charged were André “Dédé” Désormeaux, Salvatore Cazzetta, Jean “Le Francais” Duquaire, Serge “Merlin” Cyr, and Alain Brunette. After a trial lasted nine months and included testimony from Sylvain Beaudry and Patrick "Boul" Hénault, full-patch members of the gang who turned informant, the five bikers were found guilty of 22 out of 26 charges in September 2004. Their sentences were handed down to months later. Whissel received 15 years, the stiffest of the sentences. With time already served before and during the trial, he has about 10 years remaining. Tony Duguay, a member of the gang who police claimed ran a drug network in Montreal North, was sentenced to 13 years. Bandidos prospects Jacques Morin and Benoit Fortin, as well as Yves Filiatreault, who worked as a drug courier for a gang member for a brief period, were sentenced to 10, 9, and 5 years in prison, respectively. |