The court heard the testimony of a forensic identification technician from the Sûreté du Québec as well as that of a friend of the victim, during the second day of the trial of Steve Lévesque, accused of the second degree murder of Maxime Dugas- The page.
• Read also: Beginning of Steve Lévesque’s trial in Rimouski
Police officer Jean-Philippe Desjardins confirmed having assessed six separate scenes in this case.
He notably recounted having received the order to go to Sainte-Anne-des-Monts to investigate a disappearance at 11:30 a.m. on the morning of January 23, 2020. Along the way, he learned that it will rather be an investigation. for murder.
The work of the stage technician began at the end of the evening on January 23, in the residence where the victim was allegedly murdered, on 21st street in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts.
The policeman explained that the premises seemed clean and that there were no particular odors.
What caught his attention, at first glance, was the presence of red spots that made him think of dried blood spots. He noticed stains on furniture, on the refrigerator and on the floor. He also noticed that some stains seem to have been cleaned.
He decided at that time to contact the laboratory of forensic science and forensic medicine in order to request a team to assess the scene.
He then photographed the interior of the mobile home in detail. The outside expertise of the scene was carried out the next day, in daylight.
Some items found at the scene were analyzed. This is the case of a bottle of drink which was presented as an exhibit to the jury.
Several objects used for cleaning were also seized by the police, including a roll of paper towels stained with red marks. This item was presented as an exhibit to the juries.
A single fingerprint was found inside the residence.
The technician continued his testimony by presenting the photos taken on January 24, in the early morning, in the victim’s home on 1st Avenue, in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. He said he didn’t notice anything unusual at first sight.
Subsequently, the police officer mentioned that his expertise work in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts was finished and that he then continued his investigation work on other scenes in Rimouski and Saint-Pascal.
The crime scene technician said he was called to appraise the vehicle in which the accused was arrested, a black Mercedes GLK. The vehicle belonged to Maxime Labrie, who was charged with complicity after the fact in this case.
The expertise on the vehicle was carried out on January 26, 2020 in Rimouski, following the arrest of Steve Lévesque. A key from another Mercedes vehicle was found inside the vehicle’s glove compartment.
The police found, well hidden in the body of the vehicle, a tuque in which were two pistols, ammunition and cocaine.
These two weapons were presented as exhibits, as well as the ammunition.
Bluestar luminescence samples were also taken from the vehicle to find traces of blood.
The testimony of the forensic identification technician was subsequently interrupted to allow the Crown to call witness Mikael Pelletier, a friend of the victim.
He confirmed that he was, at the time, the one who took care of supplying cocaine to Maxime Dugas-Lepage’s clients when he was absent.
He confirmed that a week before the tragedy, Maxime Dugas-Lepage and himself had been met by “the Matane gang”, to tell them that from now on they had to sell narcotics supplied by them and not those supplied by Steve. Levesque.
He also said that associates of Steve Lévesque had informed Maxime Dugas-Lepage that they wanted to meet him as soon as he returned from Sept-Îles.
He explained that he was worried about the absence of his friend the next afternoon of the tragedy, when Guillaume Lefrançois told him about the events he had witnessed on the evening of January 20.
According to Mikael Pelletier, Guillaume Lefrançois was with the victim on the evening of the tragedy. The two would have gone to the residence of Mario Lafontaine, on 21st Street. The victim entered the house, but was waiting for him in the vehicle.
Still according to the witness, Guillaume Lefrançois told him that he heard a loud noise, and that subsequently three men came out to tell him that they were going to take him back and that Maxime would join him in an hour.
The witness then explained the many steps he took with friends on January 21 to try to find the victim, including a visit to the residence of Mario Lafontaine to confront him.
Reference-www.tvanouvelles.ca