Officer recounts confession Bob Mackin Contributing Writer MICHAEL Caster was drawn into a fictitious crime syndi- cate and eventually confessed to killing Mohamined Mirhadi, a B.C. Supreme Court judge and jury were told Tuesday in New Westminster. Caster is charged with the first-degree murder of Mirhadi, who was gunned down while watching a movie at Famous layers Esplanade 6 in North Vancouver on Feb. 28, 1997. Const. Keith Pearce began more than a week of testim: ny ‘Tuesday. He outlined an elaborate undercover operation that targeted Caster and J.M., another man who will be tried on the same charge in October. The co- accused js a 20-year-old North Vancouverite of Tranian descent who can only be identified by his initials. Publication of his full name is banned by a court order. Pearce said he met J.M. on July 18, 1997 at Gold’s Gym in North Vancouver. He approached }.M. to borrow weightlifting equipment and asked him to be a spotter while he worked out. Pearce told J.M. his name was “Mac” and gave him a business card that identified him as Liam MacDonald, proprietor of Mac’s Bodyguard Service in Edmonton. Pearce, a 14-year undercover veteran, told the court the RCMP assem- bled a fake criminal organi- zation in which he was charged with the duty of having the most interaction wich the targets. He played the role of the second most powerful mem- ber of the group. Sgt. Dunean Gray, nicknamed “Bull,” was ar the top. Below Pearce was “Jake,” played by Sgt. Robert Stenhouse. The fourth and lowest-ranked member was Const. Lawson Boutilier, whose role was “Chase.” Chase, Pearce explained, was “in the doghouse.” He told J.M. that Chase's girlfriend stole cocaine from Bull and the group was seck- ing someone to replace Chase in the pecking order. Pearce enlisted JM, to drive a limousine and act with him as bodyguard for Bull’s wife and girlfriends during an evening on the town, After that task was finished, Pearce explained the criminal organization to }.M. and gave him money to purchase a cell phone. J.M. joined Pearce on July 29 at th North Burnaby tin to sell $20,000 worth of steroids, J.M.’s job was to watch the purchaser, who turned out to be another undercover officer, and report any suspicious activity. Pearce told the court no steroids changed hands that day, just the key of a hotel room in which Pearce claimed the steroids were stashed. He explained to the court ir was standard practice to offer the targets a chance to opt out of cach scenario. “Lf they dida’r want to take part,” he said, “they didn’t have to.” J.M. eventually told Pearce about his desire to buy guns. Pearce said “it became clear to me there was another individual interested (in guns) besides J.M.” That individual was Caster. Audio tapes were played for the court in which JM. and Caster dis- cussed a deal to buy Glock 9 mm pistols from “Mac.” J.M. worked out a Audio tapes show MOHAMMAD Mirhadi was shot and killed on Feb. 28, 1997, in a Lower Lonsdale movie theatre. Friday. January 22, 1999 - North Shore News -— 3 7 NEWS photo Cindy Goodman MOHAMMAD Mirhadi's parents Shahrazad (with hand on her chin) and on her left Jahangir Mirhadi listen to a youth violence seminar three months after their son's murder. The couple, along with other family members and friends, have attended New Westminster court daily. ACCUSED killer Michael Caster (feft) is on trial in New Westminster. Co-accused J.M. (right) will be tried separately. deal with Pearce in which he would buy one Glock 9 mm for $450 with Caster’s money. J.-M. was to purchase a second gun for $400 to be paid at a later date. Pearce further gained J.M.’s teust by giving him a $100 bill ro buy champagne the night before the two men travelled with a load of stolen cigarettes stashed in an 18-wheel truck to Edmonton on Aug. 14. 1M. had been celebrating an anniversary with his girlfriend and said he was broke. In the Alberta city on Aug. 16, |.M. and Pearce were discussing the impor- tance of friendship, That was when J.M. claimed he was responsible for slaying Mirhadi. J.M., Pearce said, told him he shet the victim: once because of a personal dispute. “He was upset, crying... his eyes welled up with tears,” Pearce said. Later that evening ata nightelub, it was clear thar Pearce had gained J.M.'s full trust. “He told me he loved me and gave me a hug,” Pearce said. But [AL's story changed when they returned to Vancouver to complete the gun deal. Pearce arranged with a focal TV station to air the Crimestoppers re-enact: ment of the theatre killing at the same time the two were to mect on Aug. 18 at a room in the Burnaby Villa hotel. Pearce hoped to elicit more infor- mation trom J.M., who then claimed he was not the gunman, The nest day in Burnaby’s Central Park, Pearce said [.M. admitted he was lying to cover for Caster. Pearce was eventually introduced to Caster who joined J.M. and the rest of the organization in Courtenay less than a mozth later. Together they were to offload two tonnes of hashish, which Pearce said was actual- Iv hay. Pearce said Caster, while in a hotel room at the Bese Western Collingwood Inn, “admitted responsibility for shooting the victim”, Police surveillance tapes containing the confession will be played in court, Pearce said. Pearce said Caster explained he wanted to kill Mirhadi because of a personal dispute that took place a few days earlier. He said he only had a half hour to plan the shooting because he didn’t know he would see Mirhadi at the theatre that evening. credit card scam Bob Mackin Contributing Writer FORTHER evidence that Michael Caster was involved in credit card counterfeiting was introduced to the court Tuesday. Audio tapes of Caster’s telephone conversations were played for the judge and jury. One tape, made secretly by police at 6:06 p.m. on Aug. 12, 1997, had Caster calling the Royal Bank authorization centre for approval of a $10 Visa charge. The Royal Bank — operator appeared to become suspicious of the transaction and transferred him to the CIBC authorization centre. A male operator answered and Caster read the credit card number, expiry date and merchant number. The operator asked Caster if he had the card in his possession and if the cardholder, a woman in her late 20s, was present. Caster answered “yeah.” Caster claimed the purchase was for batteries and asked “is every- thing OK? This is raking a long time.” The operator asked where Caster was calling from and he ceplied “Radio Shack” before abruptly hanging up. Const. Ash Mehdizadeh, who was monitoring Caster’s telephone line, told the court Caster was actu- ally calling from his apartment in the International Plaza at Marine Drive and Capilano Road in North Vancouver. Crown counsel evidence shows Caster used a counterfeit credit card to buy tickets to Famous Players Esplanade 6 the night Mohammed Mirhadi was murdered. The card number was stolen from a customer at Kinney Shoes in January 1997 while Caster was working at the store. Severai other tapes were played, but many of the conversations were in Farsi, a language commonly spo- ken by people from Iran. English translations were contained in tran- scripts provided to the judge, jury, accused, defence and Crown lawyers. No translation was offered te members of the public. Bullet direction described Bob Mackin Contributing Writer FORENSIC pathologist Dr. Laurel! Gray told the court Jan. 14 that Mirhadi was wounded five times by three bullets. One bullet entered Mirhadi’s body near his right hip and was lodged in his abdomen. He also received primary wounds to his fet hand and forearm, she said.Gray said the bullet that went through Mirhadi’s hand was most likely the same bullet that entered his forehead, went through his brain and exited the back of his skull. The bul- let fired through his foreazia, she said, is likely the same bullet that entered his neck, tore his jugular vein and exited the back of his left shoukder. Gray conducted an autopsy on Mirhadi's body at Vancouver General Hospital March 3, 1997, She said she could not conclude how Mirhadi moved while being shot in a front row movie theatre seat. She said each of the bullets trav- celled on a downward trajectory, and that his brain and jugular vein were severely damaged by the bullets. She said “very tittle, if anything, could've been done,” to keep Mirhadi alive had he been afforded immediate medical or surgical intervention. The gunman used a 9 mm semi- automatic pistol. The murder weapon has not been found. A theatre patron seated three rows behind Mirhadi testified the gunman had dark skin, dark hair and was wear- ing a white pullover jersey with a hood. Kylie Merkley testitied she was at the 9:45 p.m. showing of the gang- ster movie Donnie Brasco-at Famous Players Esplanade 6 on Feb. 28, 1997, She said she heard a cell phone ring near the beginning of the film. A man with blond, scraggly hair walked to the front of the theatre a few min- utes later, turned to face the audience, then left through an exit to the right of the screen. Well into the film, Merkley saw three flashes of light and three gunshot sounds near the front of the theatre during a scene in which Johnny Depp’s character was remov- ing items from a vehicie’s trunk. She said the shooter stood in front of Mirhadi with his arms together, holding a gun in two hands during the first ovo shots. She said the third shot was fired using only his right hand. :