Mother of man charged with murder of 2 boys in Wendake says he sought help for depression
The mother of Michaël Chicoine, the man charged with the murder of two children in Wendake, Que., says her son had sought help for mental health problems linked to his severe depression, but the support he received "was not adequate nor sufficient."
"Never would I have thought that Michaël could have been a danger to anyone," Mylène Chicoine said in a letter addressed to the media.
Michaël Chicoine, 30, is charged with the second-degree murder of two boys, aged two and five, whose bodies were found in a residence early Sunday in Wendake, a Huron-Wendat First Nation just outside Quebec City.
Her son has attempted suicide in the past and has been hospitalized for mental health reasons several times, Chicoine said, but he did not receive the "appropriate help."
She said she spoke with her son regularly, and he told her he tried repeatedly to get help but neither Quebec City's psychiatric hospital, nor the Quebec City crisis centre had space for him.
She says the only follow-up he received was one phone call from a psychiatrist.
"The call lasted just 10 minutes," she said. "The specialist prescribed him medication without consulting further."
"I am torn by completely opposite, irreconcilable feelings," she said.
Sources close to the family told Radio-Canada that several calls were made to youth protection prior to the deaths of the two boys.
An investigation into the deaths by Quebec provincial police is ongoing, and Premier François Legault said there will also be a coroner's investigation.
Quebec's human rights commission has also opened two investigations about the deaths, one for each child.
Michaël Chicoine will be back in court Nov. 11. Until then, he remains in custody and the investigation is continuing.
Members of the community in Wendake have organized a march in memory of the two young victims on Saturday at 2 p.m.
The gathering will start on De L'Ours Street, near the primary school and daycare.
Two online crowdfunding campaigns have been launched to help the people close to the two boys during this grieving period.
