Ontario Provincial Police have arrested three members of the Bacchus Motorcycle Club in connection with a year-long investigation into auto theft that also saw the group’s Oakville clubhouse raided.
OPP say that the investigation, dubbed Project Abstract, began in June 2023 after the OPP-led Biker Enforcement Unit received information that members of the club were in possession of stolen vehicles with fraudulent vehicle identification numbers (VINs).
Police say that on Nov. 16, 2023 officers executed search warrants in Burlington, Orangeville, Etobicoke, Hamilton, Mississauga, and Paradise, Newfoundland as well as at the Bacchus MC Clubhouse in Oakville.
While a total of six stolen and re-vinned vehicles were seized at the time, police say no arrests were made at the time.
In a news release on Wednesday, police confirmed that two “full patch” members of the Bacchus Motorcycle Club and one associate member were arrested on July 2 and charged with nine combined offences, including possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.
The suspects have been identified as Chad Burtt, 48 of Oakville, Robert Janes, 39, of Orangeville and Alan Miles, 37, of Amaranth.
All three are due in court in Orangeville on July 30 to answer to the charges.
“Members of the Bacchus Motorcycle Club use motorcycles as a cover for illegal activities. They are not welcome in Ontario and they will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Det. Insp. Scott Wade said in a video message detailing the arrests.
OPP say that a number of other police forces participate in the investigation, including the Hamilton Police Service and the Halton Regional Police Service.
Police say they also received assistance from the OPP’s Asset Forfeiture Unit.
A number of images showing the inside of the Bacchus Motorcycle Club have been released.
One of them shows what appears to be a boardroom with a large table bearing the club’s insignia.
