Anjou mayor calls for larger police presence after 20-year-old killed in shooting
Anjou's mayor is calling on the City of Montreal to increase police presence in his borough following a shooting Thursday that left a 20-year-old man dead and a teenager injured.
"I have some evenings here where I have no cops at all on the road, so [Mayor Valérie Plante] has to do something about it," said Luis Miranda, mayor of the borough in eastern Montreal.
Around 7:15 p.m., Montreal police were called to the intersection of des Roseraies Boulevard and de la Nantaise Avenue, near the Galeries d'Anjou shopping centre, after hearing reports of gunfire.
When officers arrived, they found a 20-year-old man inside a parked car on a nearby cul-de-sac. Police have since identified him as Hani Ouahdi.
Ouahdi, who was not known to police, was unconscious and injured in the upper body. He was rushed to hospital, where he later died.
Officers also found a 17-year-old nearby with minor injuries to the upper body. He was taken to hospital but has since been released. The teenager is known to police and is co-operating with the investigation.
Miranda called the incident unfortunate and said more police patrols would likely help stop the violence. He's urging the city to let him reinstate Anjou's own security services, which was disbanded a decade ago as part of a centralization of services.
"It's unfortunate. Things are happening more and more, I can't understand how [a] kid's life doesn't seem to count, doesn't have a price," he said.
"I'm not asking the city to pay, I'll pay for them."
'People are scared'
Montreal police say the homicide squad is investigating, but the motive of Thursday's shooting is still unknown.
Carlos Rodrigues, who has lived in the neighbourhood for 45 years, saw the aftermath of the shooting firsthand. His son heard the gunshots, and then the pair went outside to see what was going on.
"What happened was I saw a man lying down already on the floor with somebody … trying to reanimate the kid," he said.
WATCH | Resident describes finding shooting victim outside his home:
The man performing CPR asked Rodrigues' son to compress the wounds to stop the bleeding.
That's when Rodrigues says he saw the man's face, which was "white as a ghost already, and the eyes wide open but weren't moving anymore."
Rodrigues says the neighbourhood, once generally quiet and peaceful, has changed in the past few years.
"We're scared, people are scared around here," he said, calling for more action from the city to combat the violence.
Karim Adi, who also lives in the neighbourhood, said he's worried that he or someone he loves could get caught in the crossfire.
"I'm scared," he said. "It could happen for anybody, a [stray] bullet."
Montreal police reassure public
The death marks the 32nd homicide on territory covered by the Montreal police service (SPVM) this year.
SPVM spokesperson Insp. David Shane said on Friday that officers from Station 46 are currently participating in a door-to-door operation, first to reassure Montrealers, but also to encourage people to come forward with any information.
Citing the increase in shootings and attempted murders in the city, Shane said the police service understands "very well" that citizens are concerned.
Regardless, Montreal remains a safe city, he said.
"We have to look at what is happening in the big Canadian cities, the big U.S. cities, to realize that, all in all, Montreal is a safe city, and all the police and civilian personnel of the SPVM are committed and working tirelessly to keep it safe," Shane said.
