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| Richard "Rick" Vallée |
| Richard Vallée was born on November 10, 1957 and became a Hells Angels member when the Satan's Guard biker gang became the Big Red Machine's Trois-Rivieres chapter on June 14, 1991. He was soon seen as the right-hand man of Louis "Mélou" Roy, the group's leader. By then, Vallée was no stranger to law enforcement. He had pled guilty to operating a prostitution den on November 30, 1988 and, in the next few years, would twice pled guilty to possession of hashish. On May 22, 1992, he was acquitted of the charged of illegally using a firearm and, the next year, a charge of possession of an illicit drug was dropped. In the mid 90s, Vallée left the Trois-Rivieres faction for the newly |
| formed Nomads chapter. This move was a clear indication of his sway and influence within the gang. A group of Quebec volunteer fire fighters walked into a Champlain, New York bowling alley in early 1993 and ordered some drinks. One of the men began to talk with the establisment's bartender, Lee Carter, and, after some friendly banter, asked Carter if he wanted to make some fast cash. All he had to do was "mule" loads of cocaine from New York to Montreal. The bartender feigned interest but approched police immediately after and agreed to become an informant. As a result of Carter's cooperation, two men were arrested and 57 kilograms of cocain was seized. The drug, police suspect, was destined to be delivered to Vallée and Louis "Mélou" Roy. The two Hells Angels were arrested in Quebec and charged with drug trafficking. Carter was to be the main witness at the trail but he never got the opportunity. He was killed on July 23, 1993, when a bomb planted under his Porche exploded. The explosion tore Carter's right leg from his body and it was found three vehicles away, under another car. Without their star witness, prosecutors didnt have enough evidence and dropped the charges in 1997. Serge Quesnel, a Hells Angels underling, was arrested on April 1, 1995, just before he was going to murder Robert Duduc, a leader of the Jokers biker gang. Quesnel decided to become a government witness and spilled the beans on the Duduc murder contract. Quesnel said the task had been assigned to him by Richard Vallée, who said that he wanted Duduc killed because he wasn't loyal enough to the Hells. Vallée was charged conspiracy to murder. Quesnel testified against his former boss but was less than convincing and the jury didnt believe anything he said. Vallée was acquitted on December 17, 1996. Member of the Jokers gang applauded loudly when the verdict against their Hells Godfather was revealed. Robert Duduc would be murdered on April 30, 1998. The Hells Angel wasn't out of the woods yet though. The United States Marshalls issued a warrant for his arrest in connection with the 1993 bombing murder of Lee Carter. Vallée was picked up by police and back in prison, without the posibility of bail. On January 21, 1997, while in the Riviere-des-Prairies penitentiary, Vallée was attacked by another inmate. He was punched in the face, a punch that broke his jaw. The injury needed treatment and the Hells Angel was regularly escorted from prison to a hospital for appointments. On June 5, 1997, Vallée was escorted by two unarmed prison guards to the St. Luc Hospital for treatment on his jaw. While there, he informed his escorts that he wanted to take a shower. As one guard watched the door, the other accompanied Vallée inside the bathroom. Inside the shower, an armed henchman waited with two guns. When the two entered the room, the henchman jumped the escort and confined him with his own handcuffs.Vallée and his accomplice escaped through another door and ran outside, where two other henchmen waited on motorcycles. The two jumped on the back of the bikes and sped away. The spectacular escape led to a Canada-wide manhunt. The United States Marshalls were furious and put tremendous pressure on Canadian authorities for Vallée's capture. Vallée was finally arrested by the Surete du Quebec as he left a store on St. Mathieu Street in Montreal on April 17, 2003. A firearm and cash were found in his car. Vallée had been arrested by Montreal police a week earlier for turning right on a red light. Police did not recognize him, as he had altered his appearance and was carrying a driver's license in the name of Guy Turner. The Hells Angel failed a breathalyzer test and was taken into custody. He was fingerprinted and released, after promising to return for a court appearance. Police then matched the finger prints to the famous biker fugitive. |