The Charbonneau commission is building the case that not just one, but the elections of multiple executives of one of Quebec's largest unions have been rigged by the Hells Angels.
In the days before Jocelyn Dupuis was elected the president of the FTQ-Construction union in 2008, he met with known criminal Jacques 'Israel' Emond, as well as Renald Grondin, the leader of fellow union l'Association des manoeuvres inter-provinciaux.
Wiretap evidence presented by Inspector Stephane Cloutier showed that Dupuis was later heard talking about gaining Emond's support, apparently by convincing Dupuis's rival Dominique Berubé to drop out of the race.
Testimony already presented to the inquiry has confirmed that Berubé was good friends with Emond, with the pair flying to Vancouver in October 2008 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Hells Angels in that city.
Dupuis left the union in 2009 to work for a company run by known Mafia members Domenic Arcuri and Raynald Desjardins, but wanted to ensure his handpicked crew suceeded him.
Inspector Cloutier said Dupuis did so by using the Hells Angels to convince opposition candidates to back off. On one wiretapped conversation Emond is heard telling a candidate to stand down -- and the candidate does.
In another Dupuis tells musclebound debt-collector Marce Bourgoin to "stand by" near a union election hall, and be ready to step in if necessary.
Dupuis's team, lead by Richard Goyette, won that 2009 election, although Goyette resigned after two months.
Dupuis begins testimony
Jocelyn Dupuis took the stand Thursday afternoon and told the commission that it was part of his job to attend social activities, including about 150 over 11 years with construction boss Tony Accurso, who is now facing tax fraud charges.
“Accurso is one of the largest contractors in the construction industry. It was in our interest to keep a good working relationship with him,” said Dupuis, a former crane operator.
When asked whether it was normal for the construction union brass and construction company officials go on trips and attend parties, including wives and children, Dupuis agreed that it was.
“Our job is to get work for our members, to get them hired by companies. The better your relations with those companies, the better your chance that those workers will get work at those big companies. That’s why we frequently met with Mr. Accurso,” said Dupuis.
The union officials would frequently meet at the Onyx club in Laval, owned by Accurso. Dupuis confessed that it was hard to pick up a tab when Accurso was around.
Dupuis also denied previous testimony from Ken Pereira that that he became director of FTQ Construction in 1997 after Jean Lavallée offered him the job.
Dupuis had two competitors for the position, Yves Mercure and Jacques Labonté, who both stepped aside after meeting with Dupuis.
Dupuis appeared confident during his testimony and described himself as a “born uniter,” and described himself as an “independent worker.”
Dupuis is expected to answer questions about many other issues when he returns to the stand Monday.
-With a file from the Canadian Press
