British Columbia

Parole board orders close monitoring of Jarrod Bacon's finances and cellphone

The decision is the latest in the B.C. gangster's eventful history with statutory release from a 14 year prison sentence for trying to smuggle 100 kilograms of cocaine into Canada.

The B.C. gangster has also been ordered to live in a halfway house, find a job and take his medication

The Parole Board of Canada has imposed strict new conditions on the statutory release of B.C. gangster Jarrod Bacon. (CBC)

A review of Jarrod Bacon's statutory release by the Parole Board of Canada has resulted in strict new conditions being imposed on the former Red Scorpions and Bacon Brothers gangster.

The decision is the latest in the Abbotsford man's eventful history with statutory release from the 14-year prison sentence he received for trying to smuggle 100 kilograms of cocaine into Canada in 2009.

The March 17 parole board decision orders Bacon to live in a halfway house, to disclose all personal banking information, to maintain or seek employment, not to own or possess more than one mobile communication device or SIM card and to take his prescription medication. 

Bacon is one of three notorious brothers known to have drugs and gang ties in the lower mainland and beyond.

Last fall, younger brother Jamie was sentenced to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty for his role in the so-called Surrey Six slayings. Older brother Jonathan was killed in a gangland shooting outside a Kelowna hotel and casino in 2011.

Jarrod Bacon was granted statutory release from prison for a third time in August 2020 with conditions he not consume illegal drugs or associate with people involved in criminal activities.

According to the latest parole board documents, on Dec. 15, 2020, his case management team (CMT) and police made an unannounced compliance visit to Bacon. The location of the visit is redacted over concerns of disclosing where he is living. 

The three Bacon brothers, Jamie on the left, Jonathan in the centre and Jarrod on the right, were allegedly members of the Red Scorpions gang. (CBC)

The CMT called to advise Bacon they were at the front of the apartment while a police officer watched him from the back of the building. 

Bacon told the team he was naked and needed time to dress before answering the door, however the officer at the back observed him fully dressed, retrieving a cellphone from under couch cushions.

"You were observed sliding your finger across the screen of that phone numerous times and clicking after each swipe, suggesting that you were deleting information. You then passed the phone to your partner who hid it in her bosom," reads the parole board documents.

As a result of the incident, Bacon was confined to a community correctional centre and his parole was suspended.

Bacon argued in a post-suspension interview that the police officer made up the story of him hiding the cellphone. 

According to the documents, the CMT also raised concerns about how and where Bacon was getting money. At the hearing, Bacon said he had transferred $27,000 into his new partner's account when he was released. 

"Considering the large amount of money coming in and out of your account without satisfactory explanation, as well as the scale of your criminality and ties to criminal organizations, the board is of the opinion that your finances must be monitored in order to ensure you are not returning to criminality," the decision says.

Jarrod Bacon being arrested in Abbotsford, B.C. on drug conspiracy charges. (Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit)

The documents say Bacon asked to work remotely for an employer whose name and location is blacked out, but the request was turned down.

"This employment opportunity was denied because checks about the employer revealed that he has a more extensive criminal record than what he initially told, in addition to ties to organized crime," reads the parole board decision.

Bacon first granted statutory release in 2017

Bacon was first granted statutory release in error in Feb. 2017, 16 months early due to a then undetected clerical blunder that led to a miscalculation of his release date.

His release was revoked in July 2017 for breach of conditions after he was found associating with criminals at a strip bar.

In 2018, the decision to revoke his release was cancelled after the administrative miscalculation came to light. An appeal panel ruled the parole board did not have the authority to release Bacon in the first place. 

He was granted statutory release for a second time in June 2018 with conditions on residency and drug use. But after testing positive for cocaine, the release was again suspended and eventually revoked in June 2019.

The parole board said Bacon's latest suspension of statutory release stemming from the cellphone incident was being cancelled because the board didn't think he presented an undue risk to society.

"While the board does not adhere to your version of the events that led to your suspension and finds that it lacks credibility, the board finds that, at this point, there is no reliable and persuasive information indicating that you have breached your special conditions, reoffended, or acted in a way that increases your risk to the point that it would no longer be manageable in the community," the board said. 

Canada's statutory release law requires that federal offenders be granted supervised release from prison after serving two-thirds of their sentence.