Prison sentence served, robber gets deported

globeandmail.com: Prison sentence served, robber gets deported

The Canadian Press

May 12, 2009 at 9:30 PM EDT

WINNIPEG — A violent criminal has been deported from Canada after finishing his prison sentence for a string of Winnipeg armed robberies.

Haitham Abou-Elwafa, 25, was escorted by federal immigration officials onto a plane bound for Cairo, Egypt, that departed Monday night, a source familiar with the case told the Winnipeg Free Press.

The African immigrant was the central target of a complex 2005 undercover investigation that ended early when Winnipeg police learned the accused were stockpiling guns and talking about shooting their victims.

Two local chain stores can also take credit for helping avert potential danger – Wal-Mart and Canadian Tire both refused to sell ammunition to suspicious customers in the days preceding the bust.

Dubbed “Operation Brass Knuckles,” the sting involved a series of wiretaps, surveillance and even a planted “bug” on a vehicle.

Five people were arrested including Mr. Abou-Elwafa, who pleaded guilty in 2007 to his role in five different holdups. He was sentenced to five years in prison under a joint agreement between Crown and defence lawyers.

Crown attorney Mark Lafreniere told the court police started a special task force following a series of gas-bar and convenience-store holdups in which clerks working alone were viciously attacked and threatened.

There were 16 different incidents during the summer and early fall of 2005.

All of the robberies were well planned, with two people usually going inside the store with their faces masked and a third person waiting outside in a getaway car, court was told.

On four different occasions, Mr. Abou-Elwafa was given the task of going inside and holding the door open.

He later told police that was done to prevent the terrified store clerk from hitting a security button that could lock them inside.

Mr. Abou-Elwafa was also the primary robber on a fifth occasion in which he confronted the victim and began screaming threats at the man.

Less than $2,000 worth of cash and cigarettes was netted from the five incidents Mr. Abou-Elwafa was involved in, court was told.

He used the money on his family, which had come to Canada from Egypt a few years earlier and was struggling to get by.

“I'm sorry. I was young and stupid,” Mr. Abou-Elwafa told court just prior to being sentenced.