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Ugo Fredette now in Saint-Jérôme detention centre, police say

Preliminary hearing in Ugo Fredette case gets underway in Saint-Jérôme

Ugo Fredette is now in a detention centre in Saint-Jérôme after spending nearly a week in two Ontario hospitals and a Quebec hospital, after he was arrested last week in connection with an Amber Alert case.

Fredette, 41, is expected to appear at the town's court Monday, according to Quebec's provincial police.

He had been in Ottawa's Civic Hospital since he went into coma over the weekend after he was anesthetized for medical tests. He was transferred from Ottawa by Quebec ambulance Friday night to a hospital in Saint-Eustache.

He began to emerge from his coma Thursday.

On Monday, Fredette was charged in absentia with second-degree murder in connection with the death of his partner, Véronique Barbe, who was found dead in her Saint-Eustache home on Sept. 14.

Fredette had suffered self-inflicted head injuries in a suicide attempt while in the custody of Ontario Provincial Police in Renfrew, Ont. last Friday.

Fredette was arrested earlier that day, putting an end to the Amber Alert that spanned hundreds of kilometres and was launched after 41-year-old Barbe was found slain and a six-year-old boy was missing.

The boy was found safe when Fredette was arrested and is in the care of provincial youth protection services.