Calgary police have charged eight men in connection to a string of high-profile shootings that plagued the city’s northeast last year.
“Between January 2015 and May 2016, dozens of shootings occurred between two groups of men connected to organized crime and the drug trade,” police said in a Tuesday news release.
According to the Calgary Police Service Major Crimes Section, Calgary saw 95 shootings in 2015, double that of 2014, with more than half related to organized crime. Fifteen of those shootings resulted in homicides.
“There’s consequences to this,” Insp. Don Coleman warned at a morning news conference. “It might not be the next day, but at some point we’re going to catch up to you and there’s going to be charges laid.”
On May 3, police arrested three men without incident, executing search warrants on three homes in Rundle, Sherwood and Pineridge:
- Barakat Amer, 20, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Instructing commission of offence for criminal organization
- Instructing an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Eight counts of attempted murder, involving incidents on Sunday, Nov. 8, 2015, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015 and Sunday, Dec. 13, 2015.
- Tarek El-Rafie, 24, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Commission of offence for criminal organization
- Commission of an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- 10 counts of attempted murder involving incidents on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2015, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015, Sunday, 8, 2015, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015 and Sunday, Dec. 13, 2015.
- Abdul Rahman Ali Amer, 19, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Commission of offence for criminal organization
- Commission of an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Four counts of attempted murder involving incidents on Sunday, 8, 2015, and Sunday, Dec. 13, 2015.
- Intentionally discharge firearm while being reckless as to the life or safety of another person on Saturday, Dec. 12, 2015.
- 2 teens charged with murder in case of 16-year-old killed outside Halifax mall
- Green Party deputy leader given jail sentence for Fairy Creek old-growth protests
- Cars torched, explosions heard in suspected arson in Montreal neighbourhood
- 14-year-olds accused in Halifax homicide appear in court, bail hearing set
On May 5, two men currently in custody were charged:
- Talal Mohamad Amer, 23, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Instructing commission of offence for criminal organization
- Instructing an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Six counts of attempted murder involving incidents on Sunday, 8, 2015 and Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015.
- Bader Amer, 21, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Commission of offence for criminal organization
- Commission of an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Discharge a firearm with intent to wound involving an incident on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2015.
- Obstruct justice by disguising a vehicle used in a crime, involving an incident on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015.
- Accessory after the fact to murder of David Quach on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015.
On Monday, three men were taken into custody following co-ordinated arrests in the early morning hours:
- Haitham Ramadan, 24, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Commission of an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Participate in an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Trafficking in a controlled substance – fentanyl
- Saro Pireh, 19, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Commission of an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Participate in an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
- Trafficking in a controlled substance – fentanyl
- Shaheen Assad Pireh, 18, of Calgary, is charged with:
- Conspiracy to commit an offence of trafficking
- Participate in an offence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization
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