Montreal Mafia Case: Viau Stole Our Chance To Cry, Says Falduto Family

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Relatives of two brothers killed five years ago when one Montreal mob clan sought to eliminate another said their loss is all the more painful because Marie-Josée Viau left them without a proper way to cry.

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Written statements prepared by the family of Vincenzo and Giuseppe Falduto were read from the court file on Wednesday when the sentencing phase of Viau’s case began in the Gouin court. The victims’ brother, sister and mother wrote that much of the pain they still feel has to do with Viau’s role in making the bodies disappear.

On November 7, after a lengthy trial, a jury found Viau guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, as well as a related conspiracy count. Her husband, Guy Dion, was acquitted of all charges.

“I am aware of my involvement in (what happened) and that the loss of life has had a profound effect on the family and loved ones, and I am sincerely sorry,” Viau said while sobbing as the audience drew to a close.

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Viau, 46, automatically received a life sentence when the jury returned its verdict. Superior Court Judge Eric Downs will have to determine how long Viau must spend behind bars before he is eligible for full parole. The minimum is 10 years and the maximum is 25.

Crown prosecutor Isabelle Poulin asked that Viau be required to spend between 15 and 17 years behind bars before being eligible for full parole. He also asked that Viau receive a 15-year sentence for his role in the conspiracy.

The Falduto brothers were killed on June 30, 2016 inside a garage on Viau and Dion’s farm. They were shot by a hitman who in 2019 decided to become an informant and helped the Sûreté du Québec to investigate the couple. During the trial, the informant testified that Viau and Dion helped plan the ambush, made noise to cover the sound of gunfire, and burned the bodies.

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The informant said he was hired to kill the Falduto as part of an effort by the Salvatore brothers and Andrea Scoppa, leaders of a Calabrian clan within the Montreal mafia, to eliminate several people linked to a Sicilian clan. The informant said the Falduto brothers sided with the Sicilians shortly after Vincenzo Falduto was released from a federal penitentiary, where he was serving a three-year sentence for illegal possession of two pistols.

During the summer of 2019, the informant also secretly recorded conversations he had with Viau and Dion. The jury’s deliberations are secret in Canada, but it appears that the recordings influenced the verdicts that were rendered. Viau made incriminating statements while being recorded, including a description of herself as “the mastermind” behind how the bodies were burned inside metal barrels, and the remains were dumped into a river near the estate.

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Police were unable to recover any trace of the bodies.

“There is a well-known saying that time heals pain. Unfortunately for us, this has not been true, ”wrote Vincenzo and Giuseppe Falduto’s brother and sister in a letter read aloud at court by Poulin. “As the years go by, our pain grows. Our smiles are no longer real smiles. We live with constant aching hearts that feel empty.

“Ma’am. Viau has stolen from our family in so many ways. We don’t have a cemetery to visit when our hearts are aching, or for their birthdays. We don’t have a place for our children to understand where their uncles are. He not only took them from us, she just didn’t have the heart to leave their bodies for us to make amends. She made them disappear as if they never existed. “

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Viau’s attorney, Mylène Lareau, began her arguments by referring Downs to a case in which Adele Sorella, who killed her two daughters in 2009 and was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder in 2019, saw her period of ineligibility. of probation established in the Minimum of 10 years.

Lareau argued that the 10-year minimum would also be appropriate for his client and reminded Downs multiple times that the person who killed the Faldutos was not charged with the murder.

Downs will communicate its decision at a later date.

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