Charges laid in Rabih Alkhalil escape

THE Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit – British Columbia (CFSEU-BC) and the Federal Policing – Pacific Region (FP-PR) on Monday confirmed charges have been laid against three men who allegedly assisted in the escape of Rabih (Robby) Alkhalil from the North Fraser Pretrial Centre three years ago.

However, the RCMP said they do not have confirmation that Alkhalil was arrested abroad. They added that “if that information changes,” they would let the media know. They said that “at this point,” Alkhalil was still at large.

(The media reports on Sunday that Alkhalil had been arrested were apparently sparked by information that leaked out that those who helped Alkhalil escape from prison had been charged. The VOICE said “reportedly re-arrested” in its report on Sunday.)

On July 21, 2022, Coquitlam RCMP responded to an incident at the pretrial centre after two men posing as contractors aided in the escape of Alkhalil, who remains at large.

The suspects that assisted in the escape of Rabih “Robby” Alkhalil.
Photo: Coquitlam RCMP

In February 2023, the Alkhalil investigation was transferred to CFSEU-BC with FP-PR joining the investigation in December 2023. This investigation has led to three counts of conspiracy to commit a prison breach and three counts of a prison breach. The BC Prosecution Service has approved charges of conspiracy to commit prison breach, and prison breach against the following three men:

* Edward Ayoub, 48, of Ottawa;

* John Potvin, 49, of Ottawa;

* Ryan Van Gool, 46, of Harrison Hot Springs.

Further, during the Alkhalil investigation, police uncovered information that has now led to charges against Ryan Van Gool and two more men allegedly involved in a conspiracy to murder an individual in Kamloops in March 2024. They are also facing two counts each of possession of a loaded restricted firearm and possession of a loaded prohibited firearm. The following individuals have been charged with these offences:

* Ryan Van Gool;

* Bryce Telford, 28, of Surrey;

* Scott Telford, 61 of Surrey.

In addition, Ryan Van Gool has been charged with discharging a firearm with intent and possession of a loaded prohibited or restricted firearm in relation to an incident that took place in Maple Ridge in January 2024.

Ryan Van Gool, Bryce Telford, and Scott Telford were arrested on September 5, 2025, and remain in custody. Their next court appearance is on September 10, 2025, at Vancouver Law Courts.

Edward Ayoub is in custody on another matter in another province and will be facing these new charges.

John Potvin is currently wanted on a Canada-wide warrant on these charges. If you have any information about his whereabouts or if you see him, call your local police immediately.

All 17 charges against the five individuals are by direct indictment, meaning the charges will go straight to trial without a preliminary inquiry.

CFSEU-BC and FP-PR said they would like to acknowledge and thank the Ottawa Police Service for their vital role in this investigation as well as the Coquitlam RCMP, Kamloops RCMP and Ridge Meadows RCMP.

This investigation remains active and ongoing.

If anyone has information that could assist the police in the capture of John Potvin and Rabih Alkhalil, they are requested to call their local police and or Crime Stoppers. You can also call the Bolo (Be On the Lookout) Program tipline at 1-877-687-3377.

 

ON October 18, 2022, the BOLO program in cooperation with Metro Vancouver Crime Stoppers, announced a reward up to $250,000 for any information leading to the arrest of Alkhalil. The reward was available only until May 1, 2023.

The BOLO website said: “During the evening hours of Thursday, July 21, the RCMP were called to the North Fraser Pretrial Centre in Port Coquitlam for the escape of Rabih Alkhalil, a high-profile prisoner.
“Alkhalil was standing trial for murder when he escaped with the assistance of two accomplices posing as contractors.
“Alkhalil is wanted on Canada-wide warrants for murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and being unlawfully at large. He is a very dangerous criminal with a lengthy criminal record and extensive ties to organized crime. An Interpol Red Notice has been issued for him.
“In 2017, an Ontario judge sentenced Alkhalil to life in prison for the first-degree murder of a man in a Toronto coffee shop. He was also given a concurrent sentence of 20 years for conspiracy to commit murder.
“In 2020, in Quebec, Alkhalil was sentenced to eight years in prison for drug trafficking.
“On August 30, 2022, after his escape from the North Fraser Pretrial Centre, a jury found Alkhalil guilty of first-degree murder, the crime for which he was standing trial in B.C.”
Sandip Duhre

A B.C. Supreme Court jury found Hells Angel Larry Amero guilty of conspiracy to commit murder in the shooting death of Sandip “Dip” Duhre at Downtown Vancouver’s Sheraton Wall Centre on January 17, 2012, and the homicide of Sukhveer (Sukh) Dhak who was gunned down along with his bodyguard, Thomas Mantel, in the lobby of the Executive Hotel and Conference Center in the 4200-block of Lougheed Highway in Burnaby on November 26, 2012.

Alkhalil was found guilty of conspiracy and first-degree murder in Duhre’s death and guilty of plotting to murder Dhak.
Back then, the gangland conflict was mainly between the United Nations gang and all the remnants and allies of the Dhak-Duhre side of things — and the so-called Wolf Pack: certain Hells Angels like Larry Amero and their allies and associates, the Independent Soldiers and the people that they brought to the equation and the Red Scorpions.
Red Scorpion leader Jonathan Bacon was gunned down in Kelowna on August 14, 2011, when Amero was also seriously injured. Alkhalil and Amero were accused of seeking revenge.
Three of Alkhalil’s brothers have been killed in gangland conflicts. Nabil Alkhalil, 42, was shot dead in a suburb of Mexico City in 2018. He had left B.C. for Mexico in 2013 after he was threatened with deportation for cocaine trafficking.
Khalil Alkhalil, 19, was shot to dead in Surrey in 2001 during a conflict over a $200 drug debt; and Mahmoud Alkhalil, 19, was killed in a gangland shoot-out in the Loft Six nightclub in Vancouver’s Gastown in 2003.
In April 2024, the Bolo Program announced an update of its Top 25 and the #4 suspect was revealed to be Rabih Alkhalil, wanted for murder and being unlawfully at large. A reward of up to $100,000 was announced for any information leading to his arrest.

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