‘I don’t recognize Montreal,’ says Legault after shooting deaths

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QUEBEC – With Quebec in shock over the shooting death of 16-year-old Thomas Trudel on Sunday, the Quebec government on Wednesday called on the federal government to step up its game to better control the spread of illegal firearms.

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The anger started at the top with Prime Minister François Legault, who expressed what many people think.

“It’s terrible,” Legault said as he got out of his car on his way to a Quebec cabinet meeting. “I don’t recognize Montreal.”

When asked about Ottawa’s role in fighting crime, Legault said, “They have to do more.”

His comments followed those of Public Security Minister Geneviève Guilbault, who said the killing was “heartbreaking and traumatic” for everyone in Quebec.

Guilbault said that everyone in the government understands the pain and sadness it has caused the St-Michel family and community.

And while Quebec and its 55 police forces have stepped up their game in fighting crime, Guilbault said part of the problem goes beyond the province’s jurisdiction and “Ottawa makes the decisions.”

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He said he intends to pressure the newly elected cabinet ministers in Ottawa to act, but complained that he has not received a response to a written request for a meeting with the new Minister of Public Security, Marco EL Mendicino, or with the Minister of Civil Protection, Bill Blair.

“I am calling on the federal government,” Guilbault told reporters who arrived at the cabinet meeting. “We can do everything we can as the government of Quebec and the city of Montreal, but the federal government has to shoulder its responsibilities.”

“The borders through which these illegal weapons pass are the responsibility of the federal government and the Penal Code. If we want to have harsher punishments for those very, very serious crimes, the federal government has to change the code.

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“I heard this liberal federal government make a lot of promises and talk a lot about guns and violence, but the bills they presented did not satisfy Quebec, they did not satisfy the municipalities.”

Guilbault said he is happy that Ottawa has joined Operation Centaure, the joint police force operation that Quebec launched to reduce gun violence, but said Ottawa should devote more resources to border surveillance and intelligence gathering. ” because weapons cross borders, not by magic. “

Quebec has already invested $ 90 million in Operation Centaure and will announce additional crime prevention spending next week in the Legault government’s mini-budget, he said.

Guilbault made the comments following Trudel’s shooting death near Villeray St. and 20th Ave. in St-Michel. It was Montreal’s 31st homicide this year.

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Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante has also called on Ottawa to do more to combat gun violence.

“We have really pushed for the government to become more involved and take responsibility for banning firearms,” ​​Plante said Tuesday after touring the scene of the tragedy with Police Chief Sylvain Caron.

Later, Montreal liberal spokesman Frantz Benjamin, who is also the MNA for the Viau line where the shooting took place, called the shooting a “tragedy.”

“I feel a lot of pain, a lot of sadness but also a lot of anger,” Benjamin said in a telephone interview. “Whoever did this is a coward.”

He said liberal public safety critic Jean Rousselle, himself a former police officer with 30 years of experience, has been lobbying the Avenir Québec Coalition government for weeks to get to work with Ottawa and act on the specific issue of illegal and porous weapons. borders.

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Rousselle has also called for all Quebec police forces to be equipped with tactical squads and a new emphasis on prevention.

Prevention efforts should have the same amount of funding, $ 90 million, that Centaure got, Benjamin said. The money should be used to support community groups, actions in schools and the mobilization of parents.

Benjamin said Guilbault’s appeal to Ottawa comes late in the game.

“We’ve been asking questions about this for months at the house,” Benjamin said, noting that there was another shooting incident in September, two houses down from his own home.

“I speak as an MNA but also as a parent,” Benjamin said. “Parents and parents are worried. It is time for Quebec to react and put money on the table to support prevention. Yes, Ottawa should act, but Quebec also has to contribute its two cents ”.

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