Peace bond upheld against alleged biker

Peace bond upheld against alleged biker...... Gang cops and the Crown have won their first fight in Project Flatlined to slap court conditions against an alleged gang member, even though he is not charged with any crime. Cory Dean Pinnel, 30, was ordered Tuesday by a judge to abide for a year by conditions of a peace bond under a rarely-used section of the Criminal Code. In all, Winnipeg police and federal prosecutors are trying to impose peace bonds on nine men with ties to the Manitoba Hells Angels (HA) and its “friend” gang, the Redlined Support Crew, in the wake of Project Flatlined, a police bust in mid-March that culminated in the arrests of nearly two dozen people. The proposed order against Pinnel included numerous restrictions, including a curfew, not attending HA events or wearing any of its “support” gear along with not communicating with more than 80 past and present members of the HA, Redlined and what may remain of the Zig Zag Crew, the one-time support club of the Manitoba HA. The judge agreed to lift the curfew condition, crediting Pinnel’s clean criminal record and calling the restriction “unreasonable” based on the circumstances. “Not being charged of any criminal activity has to count for something. He certainly was playing with fire when he had the frequent associations with members of a known criminal organization but he thus far has not been caught with anything to the point of being charged. He’s entitled to some benefit for that,” said Judge Theodore Lismer. However, the judge rejected a request to let Pinnel, an alleged Redlined member, stay in touch with Rod and Dale Sweeney, two alleged members of the Hells Angels, because the pair are his half-brothers. Dale Sweeney, the reputed Manitoba chapter president, was arrested in Project Flatlined. He remains behind bars, court heard Tuesday. Rod Sweeney is one of the other men police and prosecutors are trying to saddle with a peace bond under sec. 810.01 of the Criminal Code, which is aimed specifically at gangs and says the Crown must show “fears on reasonable grounds that another person will commit ... a criminal organization offence.” Of the nine men facing the orders, two agreed to the conditions. One of those men, Shawn Lloyd Sichewski, was arrested last week, accused of breaking the no-contact condition.