Mysterious plane crash killed two suspected gang-linked hitmen in Alberta, B.C.

One of two fugitives killed in a mysterious Ontario plane crash is a former Calgary gangster with a long criminal history, including crimes of “high violence,” according to the Parole Board of Canada.

On Saturday, four men, including two pilots, died after a four-seat Piper PA 28-140 crashed in a wooded area near Sioux Lookout, Ontario.

Two of the men were wanted on gang murder charges, including Duncan Bailey, 37, who court records show has a long history of drug trafficking and organized crime offenses in Alberta and B.C. .

He previously served a 10-year sentence for kidnapping and aggravated assault in Calgary.

At the time of his death, Bailey was awaiting trial for the attempted murder of Mir Hussain, who was shot dead in 2020 as he left a Vancouver pub while carrying a baby in a car seat.

The second man wanted on arrest warrants was Gene Karl Lahrkamp, ​​a suspected international hitman and former Canadian military man accused of executing a former high-level British Columbia gangster in Thailand.

Until his death Saturday, a $100,000 reward was being offered for information leading to the arrest of Lahrkamp, ​​who was the second most wanted man in Canada.

Gang connections and rivals

It is not yet clear how or why Bailey and Lahrkamp ended up together on the small private plane.

But both men had ties to organized crime groups in British Columbia that are affiliated with each other.

According to court documents, Bailey had ties to the Independent Soldiers, which is linked to the Red Scorpion gang based in British Columbia and Red Deer.

Lahrkamp was charged with the murder of Jimi Sandhu, who had previously been charged with the murder of a high-ranking member of the Red Scorpions.

Sandhu, who was killed in February, was linked to the United Nations (UN) gang, which is a staunch rival of the Red Scorpions.

The UN and the Red Scorpions were involved in a violent struggle for control of the illegal drug trade in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland.

B.C.’s anti-gang unit is investigating links between the two men, which could help explain why they were on the same plane.

$400,000 seized from Okotoks home

Hussain survived the 2020 attack but was fatally shot seven months later. No arrests have been made in connection with this homicide.

In 2021, Bailey was accused of receiving nearly $400,000 – seized from an Okotoks home – as payment for the attempted assassination of Hussain. This money is now the subject of forfeiture proceedings in British Columbia.

Bailey was out on bail awaiting his conspiracy to commit murder and trial for attempted murder.

Last week, police issued arrest warrants for Bailey, accusing him of violating his release conditions on April 23 and 26.

Four days later, Bailey’s body was found in the wreckage of the crash alongside Lahrkamp and the two pilots, whose ties to British Columbia gangsters are unknown.

Bailey sent to prison for kidnapping

Bailey has been in and out of prison his entire adult life, according to documents from the Parole Board of Canada.

The Parole Board’s decision, made in November 2016, revoked Bailey’s release because, despite the suspended charges, the risk he posed to the community was too high.

“You have a criminal history that shows extensive violence, including violence using weapons,” board member G. Gunn wrote in his decision.

These documents stem from a 10-year prison sentence (seven years and 10 months with credit for time served) given to Bailey after a Calgary judge found him guilty of kidnapping and aggravated assault in 2010, a year after Bailey’s drug conviction.

In 2014, Bailey reached his statutory release date, meaning he served two-thirds of his sentence and was granted freedoms in the community under conditions that facilitated his reintegration.

Bailey on board: ‘I made a bad choice’

For a while Bailey was doing well; he kept curfew and had cleaning and painting jobs.

But two years later, Bailey was charged after police found a Glock handgun in the backseat of his vehicle.

Bailey was charged but the case was ultimately dropped due to “search and seizure issues” in the investigation, according to the parole board document.

Hoping to return to freedom, Bailey told the commission he “made a bad choice” and called himself an “idiot” but refused to explain the circumstances of the gun .

The board was concerned not only about the gun found in Bailey’s car, but also about the money he was spending.

Spending money from past crimes

One of the special conditions attached to Bailey’s release involved providing financial disclosure to his parole supervisor.

The council raised concerns about the legitimacy of Bailey’s bank statements, finding that income from his job as a cleaner and painter had been deposited into a bank account but never touched.

“It was determined that you were regularly using funds that were in fact proceeds of crime from some of your current index offenses.”

Bailey, the commission said, was of the view that it was acceptable to use the proceeds of crime.

He justified it by telling them: “I’m already serving time for this.”

But the board of directors didn’t believe it.

“Manipulative behaviors are concerning and indicate an increased risk of recidivism,” Gunn wrote.

“Operation noon”

Before being sent to prison for kidnapping, Bailey was involved in what Calgary police described in 2009 as the largest cocaine bust in Alberta history.

In January 2008, the investigation, dubbed “Operation High Noon”, began into a drug trafficking network between British Columbia and Alberta, which involved the transportation of large volumes of cocaine between the two provinces, said the police.

Ultimately, police laid charges in 2008 and 2009 against 14 people after investigators seized 80 kilograms of cocaine worth about $8 million on the street, plus more than $300,000 in cash.

Court records show Bailey pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and was sentenced to three years in prison and banned from possessing firearms for 10 years.