Hawks close, but lose twice
The whippet way to winter warmth
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Thursday December 19, 2013
Serving Surrey and North Delta www.surreyleader.com
Aftermath of a massacre: Families detail the pain of Surrey Six murders
Coal plan: Over to you, Port Metro Vancouver
Red Scorpions boss Michael Le to serve three more years in jail for role in killings; gets nine years credit for time served
Decision on Surrey Fraser Docks’ application could come at any time
by Sheila Reynolds
by Jeff Nagel
A SENTENCE of 12 years has been handed down to Quang Vinh
Thang (Michael) Le – who pleaded guilty to playing a role in the Surrey Six murders – but with credit for time already served, the admitted gang leader now faces just over three more years in jail. Chief Justice Austin Cullen delivered the sentence Tuesday afternoon in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver, after earlier in the day hearing an agreed submission from Crown and defence lawyers recommending the 12-year sentence, minus double-time credit totalling nearly nine years for the four-and-a-half years Le has spent in custody. Le pleaded guilty last month to conspiracy to murder rival drug dealer Corey Lal. A first-degree murder charge was stayed. There is no minimum sentence for conspiracy to murder, and the maximum is a life sentence. Lal was shot to death in suite 1505 of the Balmoral Tower apartment on Oct. 19, 2007, along with five other men: his brother Michael, Ryan Bartolomeo, Edward Narong, Edward Schellenberg Christopher Mohan. Elieen Mohan andCullen said the planned murder of one person “exploded into a monstrous display of wanton, pitiless violence which stole the lives of six people ... and caused enormous devastation to their remaining family and loved ones.” Cullen said Le’s complicity “in law” was confined to the death of Corey Lal, but said his participation ultimately led to the deaths of the other five victims. “As such, his moral complicity is high,” said Cullen. Le apologized to the families of the victims in court Tuesday, saying while he didn’t deserve it, he hoped they’d one day be able to forgive him.
A CONTENTIOUS coal export pro-
“The blood you spilled out of my son was my blood.”
See MOHAN / Page 4
LEADER FILE IMAGE
Balmoral Tower in North Surrey was the scene of a mass murder on Oct. 19, 2007 that claimed the lives of six men. On Tuesday in B.C. Supreme Court, Michael Le was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in the crime. Le has already spent four-and-a-half years in jail, and with double-time credit, will serve three more years behind bars.
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posal in Surrey faced more opposition protests and a call for an interagency review as a new deadline for public comments on the project ended Tuesday. Port Metro Vancouver could make a decision at any time on the application by Fraser Surrey Docks to export up to four million tonnes a year of coal, which would come by train through White Rock, Surrey and Delta, and go by barge down the Fraser River and north to a transshipment terminal at Texada Island. Critics staged a silent vigil at the port authority offices Tuesday afternoon as the deadline passed for comments on an environmental impact assessment, which has been widely criticized as inadequate. That followed a scuffle with staff at the port offices Monday when masked protesters dressed as Santas attempted to deliver lumps of coal. On Monday, Delta council voted Monday to lead an independent inter-agency review of the coal transfer facility, although it’s unclear if it will be approved before such a review gets off the ground.
See COAL PLAN / Page 3
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