BC’s Most Feared Crew: Who Is the United Nations Gang
- Cindy Peterson
- Jul 31
- 13 min read
Updated: Oct 22
It was just after 10:00 p.m. on May 9, 2008, when Jonathan Barber set out on what should have been an ordinary drive. The 23-year-old audio installer had been contracted to work on a high-end black Porsche Cayenne.
It wasn’t his car. It belonged to gang member Jonathan Bacon, a prominent figure in B.C.’s gangland and a senior member of the Red Scorpions.
Innocent Barber had no connection to that world. He was simply doing his job of delivering the SUV to a Vancouver shop and call it a night. With his girlfriend trailing behind him in a separate vehicle, Barber navigated the quiet streets of Burnaby, heading east along Kingsway.
But nearby, a second vehicle was watching. Inside were members of the rival United Nations gang; armed, patient, and tragically mistaken. For days, they’d been surveilling the Porsche, believing Bacon would be behind the wheel. The time had come.
As the vehicles moved past 14th Avenue, the UN gunmen opened fire. The Porsche was riddled with bullets, and Barber was killed instantly.
His girlfriend, still following behind, was also targeted. Shot multiple times, she survived.
The shooters vanished into the night.
Barber’s murder, rooted in a case of mistaken identity, would become a turning point in B.C.’s gang war. An innocent man—dead.
At the center was a group calling itself the United Nations — a gang founded in the Fraser Valley in the late 1990s. When Jonathan Barber was shot, the scale of the organization became harder to ignore. The police started to notice.
Cocaine came north through international contacts. High-grade B.C. marijuana went south by helicopter, often skimming across the U.S. border under the radar. The crew built relationships with cartels in Mexico and partners in Asia. Their money moved quietly, their violence less so.
Key Members of the United Nations Gang
Clayton Roueche — Founder and Strategist
At the center was Clayton Roueche, born in 1975 in Chilliwack. Soft-spoken and disciplined, Roueche projected a calm exterior that contrasted sharply with the violent network he built.
Friends recalled a young man obsessed with martial arts and Eastern philosophy. He wasn’t flashy. He didn’t drink. But he was ambitious.
Roueche founded the United Nations gang in 1997 with a vision: a multi-ethnic criminal organization that defied the racial divisions of most B.C. gangs.
Notably:
His arrest in May 2008 on a U.S.-bound flight in Texas led to extradition and the removal of his oversight over the UN gang. His operational framework and vision persisted long after he lost control
In April 2009, Roueche pled guilty in U.S. federal court to conspiracy charges related to cocaine importation, marijuana export, and money laundering. In December 2009, he received a 30-year prison sentence, upheld upon appeal in 2011. The sentence included five years of supervised release.
Barzan Tilli-Choli – UN Gang Chief (2008–2009)
Barzan Tilli‑Choli was born in 1982 in Iraqi Kurdistan and came to Canada as a refugee in 1999 at age 17. He never gained Canadian citizenship and held permanent resident status, which later made deportation legally feasible.
He assumed control of the United Nations (UN) gang following the May 2008 arrest of Clayton Roueche. By early 2009, he was recognized as the gang’s de facto leader and operational strategist.
🎯 Violent Plots & Public Attacks
Jonathan Barber murder (May 9, 2008): Tilli‑Choli and other UN members—including Ion Croitoru and Dilun Heng—targeted what they believed was Jonathan Bacon’s Porsche in Burnaby. Barber, the vehicle’s installer, was mistaken for Bacon and killed. His girlfriend was shot but survived. Prosecutors later revealed Tilli‑Choli fired multiple shots from his AK‑47 before realizing Barber was not the intended target.
Assault near T‑Barz strip club (Feb 15–16, 2009): Tilli‑Choli directed an associate, Aram Ali, to open fire on a Range Rover carrying Red Scorpions associate Tyler Willock. One person was injured. Ali was convicted of aggravated assault, while Tilli‑Choli himself faced conspiracy and charged but later pleaded out.
Foiled GM Place hit (January 2009): In a high-stakes scenario outside a Lil Wayne concert, Tilli‑Choli and Billy Ly planned to assassinate the Bacon brothers. They were arrested before the attack could proceed. Court testimony from 2017 exposed that Tilli‑Choli was part of a precise “assassin cell” within the UN gang—members designated for planned hits, contrasted with lower-level operatives who carried out intimidation or beatings.
⚖️ Legal Proceedings & Deportation
In July 2013, Tilli‑Choli pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, specifically plotting against the Bacon brothers. His sentence totaled 14 years, with nearly nine years credited for double-counted pre-trial custody, reducing his actual time served to just over five years.
A deportation order was issued in January 2015. On January 19, 2017, following completion of his term at Kent Institution, Tilli‑Choli was officially deported to Iraq
Jing Bon Chan — Rising UN Gang Lieutenant
Jing Bon Chan was seen as a key lieutenant. Chan was widely believed to be part of the gang’s leadership structure but managed to avoid many of the lengthy sentences handed down to others. His exact standing within the group remains somewhat opaque, but police documents describe him as trusted and involved in early cross-border operations.
🚨 Notable Early Incident: 2003 Attempted Murder
In August 2003, Chan faced charges after driving to his girlfriend’s apartment in Richmond, where he allegedly stabbed her romantic partner, Winston Thieu Anh Bui, four times in the back during a heated confrontation. The victim survived but suffered life-altering injuries, reportedly falling from the third-floor balcony in panic. Chan was later charged with attempted murder and possession of a concealed weapon
Ion Croitoru (a.k.a. Johnny K-9)
Perhaps the most unusual figure associated with the United Nations gang was Ion Croitoru, better known by his wrestling name, Johnny K‑9. A former WWF and Stampede Wrestling performer, Croitoru was a familiar face in Canadian professional wrestling circles during the 1980s and 1990s.
According to a 2012 Vancouver Sun report by Kim Bolan, Croitoru was recruited into the UN gang after moving to Vancouver in 2007, following unsuccessful attempts to join the Hells Angels.
He became involved in the gang’s escalating conflict with the Red Scorpions and was arrested in May 2009 alongside Barzan Tilli‑Choli and other UN members in connection with a conspiracy to kill the Bacon brothers.
Croitoru was also charged in the mistaken-identity killing of Jonathan Barber, a 23-year-old audio installer who was shot and killed while driving a vehicle owned by Red Scorpion Jonathan Bacon.
Croitoru pleaded guilty in July 2013 to conspiracy to commit murder. The murder charges were stayed as part of the plea agreement.
He was sentenced to 13 years, with credit for 4 years and 8 months already served.
Before arriving in B.C., Croitoru had a long criminal record in Ontario. He had been a member of the Satan’s Choice motorcycle club and had been convicted in the 1990s for bombing a Thunder Bay police station, among other charges.
He was also charged (but never convicted) in the double homicide of a Hamilton lawyer and his wife in 2005.
Croitoru died on February 21, 2017, while living in a federal halfway house in Toronto, at the age of 53.
Doug Vanalstine & Daryl Johnson — Cocaine Conspirators
Doug Vanalstine: Founding Member and Interim Leader
A founding figure within the UN gang and its de facto leader following Roueche’s 2008 arrest.
In 2009, Vanalstine and associate Daryl Johnson were arrested in Project E‑Pintle, an undercover operation by CFSEU‑BC. An informant known as GL arranged a fake cocaine deal: 100 kg, $100,000 down payment, later proven to be inert substances .
In December 2012, Vanalstine pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic cocaine. He was sentenced to 10 years—reduced by 79 months for time served—and ordered to forfeit $100,040 .
As of 2025, he remains incarcerated in Canada and is still wanted by U.S. authorities on related drug charges.
Daryl Johnson: Longtime Operative
Johnson, a trusted associate and longtime gang member, pleaded guilty alongside Vanalstine.
In 2012, he was sentenced to 8 years, reduced to 7 years and 2 months with credit for time served .
He, too, remains in Canadian custody as of 2025, with no public indication of release.
Omid Bayani — UN Gang & Hell’s Angels Liaison
Born in Iran and raised in Western Canada, Omid Bayani was known as “Mo” and associated with both the United Nations gang and the Hells Angels by 2007.
Bayani was born into Iran’s Baha'i minority and experienced childhood trauma including his father’s lynching. He later admitted to crimes including armed robbery during adolescence in Canada.
GHB Trafficking Case (2007–2011)
In February 2007, Bayani was arrested in Ontario for trafficking 600 litres of GHB to Mehrdad “Juicy” Bahman of the Hells Angels’ Toronto chapter.
He was later convicted and sentenced in absentia (July 2011) to seven years in prison by the Ontario Superior Court — a sentence reduced by one year for time served; he disappeared two days before sentencing.
Gang Connections & Arrest (2007)
Toronto police records show Bayani supplied GHB to Hells Angels in exchange for drugs and threaded his activities alongside the UN gang. He was arrested in Vancouver on April 4, 2007, along with Hells Angels member Vincenzo Sansalone, for trafficking GHB.
Post-Disappearance Status
Bayani vanished in July 2011, just days before he was due to be sentenced in Ontario Superior Court. His conviction for trafficking GHB had gone ahead in his absence, and authorities issued a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest.
Despite multiple police bulletins and an active search, Bayani has not been seen since. Investigators suspected he may have used fake identity documents to leave the country or gone underground with the help of gang connections.
As of 2024, he remains a wanted fugitive, and his current whereabouts are unknown.
Conor D’Monte — The Elusive Enforcer
A rising figure in the gang, D’Monte was involved in planning high-level attacks, including the murder of Red Scorpion Kevin LeClair in a Langley mall parking lot on February.
Time on the Run: After the killing, D’Monte disappeared in 2011. He was arrested in Puerto Rico in February 2022, living under an alias and running a charity called the “Karma Honey Project.”
Extradition & Charges: Returned to Canada in March 2024 to face first-degree murder and conspiracy charges related to the LeClair murder, as well as plots against the Bacon brothers.
Douglas Vanalstine — Temporary Leader
Douglas Edward Vanalstine, originally from Kelowna, was one of the early members of the United Nations gang. Alongside Clay Roueche, he helped establish the group in the late 1990s, during its early growth in the Fraser Valley and Okanagan.
Leadership Role After Roueche’s Arrest
After Roueche was arrested in the United States in 2008, police identified Vanalstine as one of several senior figures who helped manage the gang’s operations.
2009 Cocaine Conspiracy Case
In November 2009, Vanalstine was arrested as part of Project E‑PINTLE, an undercover operation led by the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU). Police had been working with a former trafficker turned agent, known only as “GL,” who arranged a series of fake cocaine deals with both UN and Red Scorpion members.
Vanalstine and co-accused Daryl Johnson provided a $100,000 down payment and took delivery of placebo cocaine as part of a planned 100-kg transaction.
Both were arrested and later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic cocaine.
In December 2012, Vanalstine was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with credit for 79 months of time served, significantly reducing his remaining sentence.
2005 Civil Settlement in Osoyoos
In an unrelated incident, Vanalstine was linked to a 2005 shooting in Osoyoos. A man named Dave Loeppky alleged that Vanalstine shot him twice — once in the leg and once in the foot.
While no criminal charges were laid due to lack of evidence, Loeppky later sued and was awarded $314,000 in a civil court settlement. Vanalstine did not defend the lawsuit.
Elliot “Taco” Castañeda & Ahmed “Lou” Kaawach — Mexican Links
As the United Nations gang moved into large-scale international drug trafficking in the early 2000s, two members played key roles in managing its relationship with Mexican suppliers: Elliot Abben Castañeda and Ahmed “Lou” Kaawach.
Elliot “Taco” Castañeda
Castañeda, a Guatemalan-born Canadian from Abbotsford, was reportedly responsible for coordinating marijuana-for-cocaine deals on behalf of the UN gang. Fluent in Spanish and familiar with the region, he made frequent trips to Guadalajara, Mexico, where the gang was attempting to solidify its supply lines.
On July 12, 2008, Castañeda was shot and killed at a restaurant in the Santa Teresita neighborhood of Guadalajara.
He was dining with several other Canadians when gunmen entered and opened fire.
Authorities believe the attack was a targeted killing, likely tied to a failed drug shipment or internal cartel dispute.
Ahmed “Lou” Kaawach
Kaawach, a Lebanese-born Canadian, was also killed in the same attack. He had previously been deported from Canada due to weapons offenses, but continued working with the UN gang out of Mexico.
According to InSight Crime and B.C. police, Kaawach acted as the primary liaison between the UN gang and Mexican cartels—most notably the Sinaloa cartel.
Like Castañeda, Kaawach was helping manage the cocaine supply chain from Mexico back into Canada and the Pacific Northwest.
His presence in Guadalajara and death alongside Castañeda suggest that the two were key operators, not just intermediaries.
Fallout and Replacement
Their deaths were considered a major blow to the gang’s Mexican operations. According to reporting by InSight Crime, after Castañeda and Kaawach were killed, the UN gang’s Mexican operations were taken over by Salih Abdulaziz Sahbaz, a Canadian of Iraqi origin who had been brought into the gang years earlier by Clayton Roueche.
Sahbaz was later executed in Sinaloa in 2012, also reportedly linked to drug losses and cartel fallout—highlighting the gang’s repeated failures to maintain influence in Mexico.
Salih Abdulaziz Sahbaz
A Canadian of Iraqi origin, Salih Sahbaz was described by police as a high-ranking member of the UN gang and its primary contact with Mexican cartels after 2008.
He had been with the group since at least 2004 and also headed the “Kurdish Crew,” a semi-autonomous faction operating in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.
In January 2012, Sahbaz was found dead in Culiacán, Sinaloa, killed execution-style with a .45-caliber firearm. He had two Canadian passports on him and was believed to have been working off a debt related to a lost cocaine shipment. Police believe he was attempting to rebuild his standing in Mexico at the time of his death.
Conor D’Monte: From Fugitive to Canadian Custody
Conor Vincent D’Monte is alleged to have been a high‑level figure in the United Nations (UN) gang known for drug trafficking, extortion, and murder.
He was formally charged in 2011 with first‑degree murder in the February 6, 2009, shooting death of Kevin LeClair, a member of the rival Red Scorpions gang, in a Langley mall parking lot.
D'Monte also faces charges of conspiracy to murder Red Scorpions leaders Jonathan, Jarrod, and Jamie Bacon. Read about the Bacon Brothers here.
Disappearance & Arrest
After the charges were laid in early 2011, D’Monte disappeared. He remained off the radar until February 2022, when he was arrested in a suburb of San Juan, Puerto Rico. There, he had been living under a false identity and working with a local non‑profit known as the Karma Honey Project, involved in honey‑bee conservation and community aid projects.
Extradition Process
Following his arrest, D’Monte spent nearly two years contesting extradition in U.S. territory. On January 24, 2024, he dropped his habeas petition and formally abandoned further legal challenges, agreeing to return to Canada without a full extradition hearing.
Return to Canada
On March 22, 2024, local authorities confirmed that Conor D’Monte had been extradited and transported to a pre‑trial facility in British Columbia. He remains in custody, awaiting the next legal steps and eventual trial. His return was the culmination of joint operations involving CFSEU‑BC, U.S. law enforcement, Canada Border Services, and multiple international agencies.
Legal Status & Proceedings
As of May 29, 2024, the B.C. Supreme Court heard that D’Monte was still awaiting legal aid approval for his defence. A new court date was expected shortly afterward once the documentation was in order.
Cory Vallee – Enforcer and Hitman
Known as one of the gang’s most violent enforcers, Cory Vallee was convicted of first-degree murder for the 2009 shooting of Kevin LeClair, as well as conspiracy to kill members of the Red Scorpions. He was sentenced in 2018 to life in prison with no parole eligibility for 25 years.
Gang War in Public View: 2008–2009 Violence Surge
By 2008, the United Nations gang was embroiled in a violent conflict with rival groups — most prominently the Red Scorpions, led in part by the Bacon brothers: Jonathan, Jarrod, and Jamie.
This period saw a significant escalation in public shootings across Metro Vancouver, many of them tied to ongoing drug and turf disputes between the UN gang and its enemies. Key events included:
February 6, 2009 – Surrey Shooting Spree: Five people were shot in a single day in targeted incidents across Surrey and Langley. Police believed the events were part of an intensifying gang war between the UN and Red Scorpions.
February 15, 2009 – Kevin LeClair Murder: Kevin LeClair, a Red Scorpions associate, was shot multiple times in broad daylight outside a Langley shopping plaza. He later died in hospital.
The killing was part of a retaliatory loop between rival gangs.
In 2018, UN gang enforcer Cory Vallee was convicted for this murder.
Ongoing Drive-by Shootings: Throughout 2008 and 2009, at least 20 people were killed in gang-related shootings in Metro Vancouver. Many incidents occurred in parking lots, intersections, and residential neighborhoods. Civilians were sometimes caught in the crossfire or mistaken for gang targets, as in the case of Jonathan Barber in May 2008.
Media Coverage and Police Pressure: The violence led to near-daily headlines and growing public concern. In response, police launched Project Rebellion — a multi-agency task force targeting both the UN gang and the Red Scorpions.
Authorities connected the violence to the gang’s attempts to control street-level drug trafficking networks, secure territory in Surrey and Abbotsford, and reassert dominance following Clayton Roueche’s arrest in 2008.
As gang violence intensified in Metro Vancouver between 2008 and 2009, a number of arrests and investigations targeted key figures in the United Nations gang and its rivals. A multi-agency investigation, referred to in court records as Project Rebellion, began gathering intelligence during this period.
Authorities conducted surveillance, used confidential informants, and coordinated with U.S. agencies to pursue members connected to organized drug trafficking, weapons offenses, and murder conspiracies.
Major Arrests and Charges (2009–2013)
In 2009, senior UN members Douglas Vanalstine and Daryl Johnson were arrested following an undercover operation involving the attempted purchase of 100 kilograms of cocaine. Both later pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges and received multi-year sentences.
In May 2009, Barzan Tilli-Choli, Ion Croitoru (Johnny K-9), and others were arrested in connection to a series of planned attacks, including the mistaken-identity killing of Jonathan Barber and alleged murder plots targeting members of the Bacon family.
In 2013, Croitoru pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and was sentenced to 13 years, reduced to under five years with credit for time served.
Evidence in some of these prosecutions was provided by a police agent known publicly only as GL, a former trafficker who agreed to cooperate in exchange for protection. GL testified about drug transactions and recorded conversations that formed the basis of multiple charges.
In 2018, Cory Vallee was convicted of first-degree murder in the 2009 killing of Red Scorpions associate Kevin LeClair, as well as conspiracy to murder Jonathan, Jarrod, and Jamie Bacon. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Conor D’Monte, believed to have assumed a leadership role after Roueche’s arrest, was charged in 2011 in connection with the LeClair killing. He remained a fugitive until his arrest in Puerto Rico in 2022, where he was living under a false name.
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