MONTREAL – Five people are standing trial in Gouin court after the SharQC sting operation into the Hells Angels in Quebec.
Sylvain Vachon, François Vachon, Claude Berger, Yvon Tanguay and Michel Vallières are facing several charges, including conspiracy and murder between 1994 and 2002.
A sixth man, Christian Ménard, 37, was also facing charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder but they were dropped on Tuesday, Aug. 4.
The Crown did not give a reason.
Earlier in the week, 54-year-old Emery Martin pleaded guilty to all the charges places against him.
The trial was supposed to start Monday, Aug. 3, but had been delayed a week to replace a jury member who was no longer able to take part.
The 2009 SharQC operation led to 156 arrests, including 111 suspected members of the Hells Angels biker gang, with charges ranging from first-degree murder to drug trafficking and gangsterism.
More than 100 of the people arrested have pleaded guilty; 31 were released after a judge ruled their cases were being delayed without proper reason.
Another saw his proceedings dropped, while two other accused, who are anglophone, will have a separate trial in English in January.
The trial is expected to last between 18 and 24 months.
*with files from The Canadian Press.
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