BY: April Cunningham
telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com
Public safety will be top of mind for police as they monitor a Bacchus motorcycle club gathering expected to draw around 100 bikers to the city this weekend.
"We'll certainly be around and watching any activities that's untoward," Saint John police chief Bill Reid said Friday. "But past indications are they've been very respectful and respectful of the folks at the inn."
The bikers, from across New Brunswick and beyond, are gathering at the Colonial Inn on City Road in a meeting that runs through Sunday.
The growing Bacchus group, which has a clubhouse on Pitt Street in the south end, has longtime links to the Hells Angels.
Like the Hells Angels, members wear a one per cent symbol, which generally indicates they relate to the one per cent of society who are outlaws.
Members of the Bacchus motorcycle club are holding a meeting at the Colonial Inn this weekend. Police chief Bill Reid said he's sure they will be talking about things they will not want police to know.
Criminal Intelligence Service Canada considers Bacchus an outlaw motorcycle gang known to be involved in drug trafficking and moving stolen goods. Their main clubhouse is in Osborne Corner, Albert County.
In recent years, the club has absorbed the former Charlotte County Mariners in St. George, as well as the East Coast Riders of Nova Scotia.
While RCMP intelligence officers monitor the club's expanding influence, police in Saint John say its membership has grown as well.
"We've noticed an increase in folks in Saint John with 'one per cent' on their jackets," Deputy Police Chief Bruce Connell said. "We know they've grown in Saint John."
The number of members in the city is still relatively small, but Connell said it has probably doubled in size since it set up shop in Saint John in 2005.
"Generally those types of clubs have criminality to them," Connell said. "For sure we want to know what their intent is in our city."
Members of the Bacchus club could not be reached for comment Friday.
Two men and a woman working on two large motorcycles outside the Pitt Street clubhouse did not want to be interviewed.
One man wore a leather vest with the Bacchus crest, and "1 %" was emblazoned on the shirt sleeve of his black T-shirt.
The club has been receiving extra attention since Fredericton city council bought a strip club for $500,000 in a bid to curb illegal activity.
The Fredericton police had warned council that the North Star Sports Bar Pub and Eatery had become a magnet for Bacchus and Hells Angels members.
At least one Bacchus member, Ron Richard, denied allegations the club has plans to expand in Fredericton in an interview with the Daily Gleaner. He said members just enjoyed going to the pub to party and have a good time.
While the topic of this weekend's meeting is unclear, Saint John's police chief expects members will take the bikes out for a run at some point.
"If there are noise complaints, we'll address them immediately. If there is unruly behaviour, we'll address it immediately," Reid said.
When asked if he was concerned about the potential for organized crime to be discussed behind closed doors, Reid said he's sure they would be talking about a lot of things they wouldn't want police to know.
"The most important thing is public safety," he said.
"Whatever they're doing within the confines of the establishment, the more important thing is the safety of our citizens during their stay here."