8 years in prison for discharging a weapon in the middle of the street

An alleged member of a street gang who discharged a firearm in broad daylight on a busy artery will have to serve eight years in prison, a judge has ruled, denouncing the scourge of firearms.

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“The gesture was clearly premeditated, several shots were fired during rush hour in a residential area,” commented judge Josée Di Lallo in sentencing Michaino Bruno on Friday at the Montreal courthouse.

Standing in a room at the Rivière-des-Prairies establishment from where he appeared by videoconference, the 26-year-old accused remained impassive during the pronouncement of the severe sentence for his crime committed in September 2020.

At the time, Bruno, who is affiliated with the Profit Boyz gang according to the Montreal police, presented himself in front of a convenience store in Montreal North. And ignoring the passers-by around him, he started shooting with a gun.

“Young girls who were walking on the sidewalk a few feet from him jumped up and ran away, people took refuge,” explained the magistrate.

A man was hit in the thigh and had to be taken to hospital. A ballistics analysis of the bullet determined that the firearm was either prohibited or restricted.

Bruno, for his part, fled, but the police quickly seized him. By cross-checking clues at the crime scene, it was established that he was the shooter.

serious recklessness

“Shooting in broad daylight shows serious carelessness,” said the judge.

It is moreover to deter criminals who do not hesitate to act in this way that the magistrate insisted on imposing a severe sentence.

Montreal is seeing a significant spike in gun crime, she said, citing police reports filed as evidence.

“There have been many recent events with the risk of collateral victims that occur at all hours of the day and night, which do not spare innocent victims,” ​​she said.

On the internet, the number of young people showing themselves armed is only increasing, according to police reports.

“The penalty must deter anyone from acting [comme Bruno] “, concluded the judge, who also imposed on the accused a ban on the carrying of weapons in perpetuity.