Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, slain Ottawa shooter, had criminal record in Quebec, B.C.
Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, the slain gunman in Wednesday’s shooting at the Ottawa War Memorial and Parliament Buildings, had a criminal record in Quebec and British Columbia.
Court documents obtained by CBC News show that Zehaf-Bibeau pleaded guilty to charges including drug possession and robbery.
Zehaf-Bibeau, a Canadian born in 1982, was charged with drug possession in 2004. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 60 days in jail.
Quebec court show Zehaf-Bibeau lived in Montreal at the time in the north-end neighbourhood of Villeray. CBC News in Montreal went to the address listed on the court documents. Neighbours said Zehaf-Bibeau had not lived there for years.
Attended Burnaby mosque
Zehaf-Bibeau was in trouble with the law again in 2011, this time in British Columbia.
Zehaf-Bibeau was charged with robbery and uttering threats in Vancouver. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of uttering threats and was sentenced to one day in jail, with credit for 66 days already served, according to court documents.
CBC News has also learned the 32-year-old may have had a connection to a mosque in Burnaby, B.C., and may have worked for a Burnaby irrigation company.
The owner of a Burnaby irrigation company said Zehaf-Bibeau may have worked for them for two days a couple of years ago,
The company owner also said his own son — who converted to Islam seven years ago and regularly attends the Masjid Al-Salaam Mosque in Burnaby — had some conversations with Zehaf-Bibeau,
The man's son was concerned about Zehaf-Bibeau's beliefs, and asked him what Allah would want him to do.
However, the son believed Zehaf-Bibeau was on a right path.
A chairperson at the mosque said he did not know Zehaf-Bibeau and that he was appalled by the day's events. He emphasized that they work very hard to ensure radicalization does not happen.
He said the measures included working with Canadian intelligence officers and even having Canadian military recruiters visit the mosque.
The chairperson said the mosque even forbids small group discussions about the Qur'an.
Zehaf-Bibeau was raised in Laval, just north of Montreal. Neighbours told CBC they remember Zehaf-Bibeau as a sweet boy, and are in shock at the news.
According to Radio-Canada, Zehaf-Bibeau's mother, Susan Bibeau, still lives in Montreal and works for the federal government. She and Zehaf-Bibeau's father, Bulgasem Zehaf, divorced in 1999.
Clarification : An earlier version of this story said that Michael Zehaf-Bibeau was accused of a bank robbery in Vancouver. In fact, he was accused of a 2011 robbery.(Oct 22, 2014 8:54 PM)
