Weeks before he is due to be sentenced in a U.S. court for drug-trafficking, one of Metro Vancouver's most notorious gangsters has filed a complaint against the RCMP, alleging the force orchestrated the events leading to his arrest and violated his rights, CTV News has learned.
Legal experts say UN gang leader Clayton Roueche could be trying a legal manoeuvre to get out of prison sooner.
U.S. prosecutors had been building a case against Roueche for years. They said the Chilliwack man was moving so much marijuana and cocaine throughout the U.S. they were looking for any chance to grab him.
But as long as Roueche avoided the U.S., he was safe from prosecution.
On May 19, 2008, Roueche flew from Canada to Mexico to attend a wedding. But he was denied entry in Mexico City.
He expected a direct flight back to Canada but was forced onto another flight that had a stopover in Texas.
When the plane landed, he was forced off the plane.
In a complaint filed with the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, Roueche alleges that the RCMP orchestrated his denial of entry in Mexico and his delivery to the U.S. without an extradition process.
"The question for Clay Roueche appears to be whether or not Canadian police authorities may have been complicit in doing an end run on the extradition process," said criminal lawyer Mark Jette. "How all of that will assist him with his American situation remains to be seen."
Roueche pleaded guilty to trafficking. He is due to be sentenced next month in Seattle.
The U.S. government is asking for 30 years in prison.
Roueche's legal team did not respond to CTV News.
But some think that by forcing the RCMP to review his case, Roueche may be trying to win a treaty transfer and end up back in Canada to serve his sentence.
If that happens, Roueche could be up for parole after 10 years.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Lisa Rossington
