Ion William Croitoru

was a Canadian professional wrestler. He was born and raised in Ontario, Canada. To wrestling fans, Croitoru is better known by his ring names, Johnny K-9, Bruiser Bedlam, and Taras Bulba. He competed in several Canadian wrestling promotions, including Stampede Wrestling, and later wrestled for New Japan Pro Wrestling, Smoky Mountain Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He wrestled as a jobber in the WWF, but he was booked to win titles in several other promotions. Croitoru was also known for his history of legal problems. He was a member of Satan's Choice, a biker gang. He was convicted of assault, trafficking cocaine and bombing a police station. In 2005, Croitoru was arrested for the murder of lawyer Lynn Gilbank and her husband Fred. After a lengthy investigation, the charges were dropped in June 2006 because of insufficient evidence. He worked as a security guard in Vancouver, British Columbia, until being arrested in May 2009 for conspiracy to commit murder. On January 24, 2011, Croitoru was charged with first degree murder in connection with the 2008 killing of Jonathan Barber in Burnaby, British Columbia. On May 15, 2009, Croitoru was arrested, along with seven other members of the United Nations gang. They were charged with conspiracy to commit murder for allegedly plotting to kill the Bacon Brothers and other members of the Red Scorpions gang. On January 24, 2011, Croitoru was charged with first degree murder in connection with the execution of Jonathan Barber and the attempted murder of Barber's girlfriend Vicky King, then 17, in Burnaby on May 9, 2008. In July 2013, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, and the murder charges were stayed. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison, which was reduced to four years and eight months after factoring in time served. In January 2015, he applied for parole, stating that he had agreed to help with the murders to impress members of the United Nations gang, but that he did not intend to kill anyone. The application was denied.[46] On September 1, 2016, Croitoru was released to live in a halfway house and was ordered not to have any contact with gangsters or criminals.