David Atwell was born on 1965 and is a Canadian outlaw biker, gangster and police informer who played a key role in the Ontario Provincial Police's Project Develop operation against the Hells Angels between 2005 and 2007.
34 Facts About David Atwell
1.
2.
On 18 October 1983, David Atwell started working as a security guard at the age of 18.
3.
David Atwell's mentor was "Jim", a British immigrant and a former Royal Marine who flagged him as a "natural" for the security business, taking him under his wing to train him to be a bodyguard and a security guard.
4.
David Atwell described "Jim" as a tough veteran of the Falklands War who had seen combat, and who taught him much about serving as a bodyguard.
5.
David Atwell was recruited into the Para-Dice Riders by their secretary Donny Petersen.
6.
David Atwell described Petersen as a "quick study and very smart".
7.
David Atwell came to be known as "Shaky" because one Para-Dice Rider stated his chances of being successful were "shaky" at best.
8.
In September 1999, David Atwell was promoted from being a "hang-around" to being a "prospect".
9.
David Atwell got lost on his way to Sorel, and when he arrived was ordered by the Para-Dice Riders national president, John "Winner" Neal, to report to serve his new masters in the Hells Angels.
10.
David Atwell described the new Ontario Hells Angels as submissive to the long-standing Quebec Hells Angels with some even going so far as to affect French accents in an attempt to sound like the Quebec Angels.
11.
David Atwell stated that he last spoke with Stadnick while serving as a guard at that meeting, describing Stadnick as cordial, but very cagey and careful about what he said.
12.
The RCMP told Intercon Security that it was unacceptable for a Hells Angel like David Atwell to be serving as one of the guards to be present at the speech to be given by Martin, leading Intercon to terminate David Atwell's employment immediately as the company did not wish to lose its contract with the federal government.
13.
David Atwell rose up the ranks of the Hells Angels Downtown Toronto chapter to become the sergeant-at-arms, and a "full patch" Angel.
14.
In 2005, David Atwell become a police agent informer for an operation the police called Project Develop, for which he was paid $1,850 a week by the police.
15.
David Atwell has stated that he became an informer for moral reasons, not financial, and that he only agreed to accept the money following advice from "Jim", his Royal Marine mentor that he would need the extra money while living in witness protection.
16.
David Atwell started to work as an agent informer in September 2005.
17.
On 5 April 2006, while wearing a wire David Atwell recorded Mehrdad "Juicy" Bahman of Richmond Hill talking to him about his collection of sub-machine guns.
18.
David Atwell described Bahman as "whatever you need, I can get it kind of guys" who could obtain whatever was asked of him for the right price.
19.
David Atwell's stress was increased later in April 2006 when Donny Petersen, the Para-Dice Rider secretary turned Hells Angels national secretary, learned from a police source that there was an informer among their ranks, starting the search for the "rat".
20.
David Atwell became friends with Campbell after he joined the downtown Toronto chapter, and in July 2006 spent a weekend at Campbell's cottage at Baysville in the Muskoka region where the two tried fruitlessly to fish for trout.
21.
David Atwell's wire recorded the members of the Toronto chapter talked about a failed murder attempt, where the Mafiosi Pietro Scarcella hired Paris Christoforou, the sergeant-at-arms of the Angels London chapter, to murder a rival Mafiosi, Michele Modica.
22.
David Atwell's wire recorded that Petersen and Campbell thought the incident had damaged the image of the Angels and further recorded Petersen as saying that Christoforou had beaten up Scarella in prison.
23.
David Atwell stated that he "never had much respect" for Gault, a man whom he greatly disliked.
24.
On 6 February 2007, while wearing a wire David Atwell recorded a discussion with Campbell to plan to set up a meeting for him to buy cocaine with the intention of selling it.
25.
On 20 February 2007, David Atwell recorded a discussion with Campbell about their plan to sell the cocaine he had purchased in Kitchener.
26.
When David Atwell asked why he had not been killed if he was a suspected informer, he received the reply from Myles: "That's why we're here right now".
27.
David Atwell recalled that he felt deeply terrified at that moment, knowing he was suspected of being an informer and that his fellow Angels were debating the merits of killing him.
28.
David Atwell left the meeting feeling grateful that Myles had decided to talk to him instead of having him killed as his fellow Angels had wanted while feeling very troubled knowing his life was in danger.
29.
When David Atwell worked his final shift as it turned out as a bartender at the downtown clubhouse, he noticed that there was a coldness to his fellow Angels despite their superficial attempts to be friendly as he noticed their smiles and jokes seemed a little too forced.
30.
The next morning, David Atwell was ordered to go into witness protection by his police handlers, who suspected there was going to be a murder attempt against him at any moment.
31.
At a trial that took place between September 2010 and May 2011 where David Atwell was the star witness for the Crown, five Hells Angels including John "Winner" Neal, the president of the Downtown Toronto chapter, were convicted on charges relating to dealing in GHB and cocaine plus possession of illegal weapons, but all of the accused were acquitted on charges of belonging to a criminal organization.
32.
In November 2010, David Atwell took the stand as a witness for the Crown.
33.
Apart from being lonely, David Atwell stated life in witness protection is a life of endless paranoia as the Hells Angels are looking for him while there is always the danger of someone recognizing him and telling the Hells Angels where he is.
34.
David Atwell has stated that he has no control over his life as his police handlers decide where he is to live and work with no input from him.