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| Claude "Ti-Loup" Vézina |
| Claude Vézina was born on June 5, 1956. Called "Ti-Loup" (which translates into "small wolf") by associates, Vézina was a founder of the Rock Machine's Quebec City faction. By then, he had already amassed a list of convictions going back to 1979, including several connected to drugs. Vézina must of held influence because, by the mid 1990s, Vézina held the position of president for the Quebec chapter. He was also a part owner of the gang's clubhouse on Saint-Joseph street. On May 21, 1997, "Ti-Loup" Vézina and his right-hand man, fellow Rock Machine member Dany "Le Gros" Légaré, were charged with drug trafficking. To arrest Vézina, police carefully made their way around his guard dogs, penetrated the home, and dragged him from his bed. |
An undercover agent, posing as a drug dealer, completed seven drug transactions with the two bikers during a five month period. Seized in the operation was a laboratory where PCP was being manufactured, $1.5 million worth of various drugs, 325 kilograms of explosives, detonators, seven revolvers, two machine guns, three carabines, and a silencer. Vézina and Légaré pleaded guilty on September 11, 1997. The men were sentenced to seven and five years and were shipped to the maximum security Donnacona Federal Penitentiary to serve their time. With the conviction of Vézina, Fred Faucher replaced him as president of the Rock Machine's Quebec chapter. On October 14, 1998, two masked individuals started a fire in a building owned by Vézina and Dany Légaré. The men were not caught and the fire caused a few thousand dollars worth of damage. Vézina and Légaré were back in court on September 28, 1999, when they pleaded guilty to 13 charges of living off the proceeds of crime. According to prosecutor Brigitte Bishop, Vézina made over $400,000 a year, while only declaring between $30,000-$35,000. He received a four year sentence, to be served concurrently with his drug trafficking conviction, and a $30,000 fine. Légaré received three years and a $20,000 fine. Among the goods seized by the government in connection with this case was the Rock Machine's clubhouse, four motorcycles, three automobiles, jewellery, a chalet, and a Saint-Brigitte sugar shack. In an article that appeared in the Montreal Gazette on January 20, 2002, journalist Paul Cherry reported that Vézina quit the Rock Machine in February 2001. He contacted members of the club and told them that he was quitting due to their decision to join the international Bandidos organization. |