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Guilty pleas entered in relation to lengthy police investigation into Kamloops biker gang

Throttle Lockers guilty pleas

One of three men charged following a years-long police investigation into an alleged Kamloops biker gang has pleaded guilty.

Shawn Carlisle, 49, pleaded guilty Thursday in Kamloops provincial court to one count each of trafficking cocaine and unlawfully selling cannabis.

No details were read into court and Carlisle’s sentencing is expected to take place sometime early next year.

Carlisle was charged last summer alongside Zale Coty, 53, and Jacob Cavanagh, 29. At a news conference in July, police said the trio was charged following an investigation into the Throttle Lockers, described by Mounties as a puppet club of the Hells Angels.

At the time, police said they thwarted an attempt by the Throttle Lockers to establish a clubhouse in Kamloops.

Mounties said the investigation led to a series of search warrants executed in 2019, which resulted in the seizure of more than $330,000 in cash, a significant amount of drugs and Hells Angels support gear, among other items.

The seized cash is now the subject of civil proceedings in the B.C. Supreme Court. The province’s civil forfeiture office does not want to see the money returned to the club or the individuals from which it was seized.

Police said the investigation started in 2017.

Lawyers will return to court on Nov. 24 to set a date for Carlisle’s sentencing.

Coty and Cavanagh, meanwhile, are slated to appear in B.C. Supreme Court for a pre-trial conference on Nov. 22. No trial dates have been set.



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