Latest news with #meurtre
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Yahoo
Accused in deadly Amqui, Que., truck crash found guilty of murder
Steeve Gagnon has been found guilty of first-degree murder after running down and killing three people with his pickup truck in Amqui, Que., in March 2023. The 12 jurors, who began their deliberations behind closed doors on Friday morning, delivered their verdict at the courthouse in Rimouski, Que., on Saturday evening. Gagnon faced three counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder using a motor vehicle. He was found guilty on all five charges. Quebec Superior Court Justice Louis Dionne immediately sentenced Gagnon to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 25 years on the murder charges and 10 years for each of the attempted murder charges, to be served concurrently. Gérald Charest, 65, Jean Lafrenière, 73, and 41-year-old Simon-Guillaume Bourget were killed after being struck by Gagnon's vehicle. It was an emotional scene when families and community members exited the courtroom after the verdict. Some were tearful, while others seemed relieved. Amqui Mayor Sylvie Blanchette told Radio-Canada that people can now turn the page. "It doesn't erase anything," she said in French, "Gérald, Jean and Simon-Guillaume will not be coming back, but at least for the families, it's like a balm on a wound." "The verdict that they were waiting for is the one that came out," she said of the victims' loved ones. Gagnon admitted he was driving the vehicle that struck and killed three people and seriously injured three others, but during his jury trial, the defence argued it was an accident. His lawyer, Hugo Caissy, said Gagnon was driving when he dropped something on the floor of his vehicle, reached down to pick it up, and then lost control of the vehicle and struck the pedestrians. The Crown, however, had argued that Gagnon's actions were premeditated and intentional. The prosecutor pointed to a series of videos Gagnon recorded just two days before the crash, where he described running down children in a schoolyard with his truck. On March 13, 2023, the day of the crash, Gagnon stopped at a schoolyard, but there were no students there because it was a pedagogical day. Six minutes later, the first pedestrian was hit. In order to find Gagnon guilty of first-degree murder, jurors had to conclude that he intentionally ran down those people, and that he planned the crime in advance. "We always believed that that it was first-murder and we were confident in our evidence," Crown prosecutor Simon Blanchette said on Saturday. Meanwhile, the defence has 30 days to appeal the verdict. Caissy wouldn't comment on whether or not it's a path Gagnon will pursue.
Al Arabiya
12-06-2025
- Al Arabiya
French prosecutors seek murder charge for school stabbing suspect
French prosecutors on Thursday requested that a 14-year-old school pupil detained for allegedly stabbing to death a teaching assistant in eastern France be charged with murder and placed in pre-trial detention. The secondary school pupil was arrested Tuesday after allegedly killing the 31-year-old school monitor with a knife during a bag search in the eastern town of Nogent, in an attack that caused widespread shock in France. On Thursday, prosecutors requested he be charged with 'murder of a person carrying out a public service mission' and 'intentional violence' against a police officer injured during the arrest. The prosecutor's office also requested that the pupil be placed in pre-trial detention, Dijon prosecutor Olivier Caracotch said in a statement. As a minor, the suspect faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison instead of life imprisonment. The prosecutors made the announcement as classes resumed at the Françoise Dolto school struck by the tragedy. Regional prosecutors told reporters on Wednesday that the teenager acknowledged 'being the perpetrator' of the deadly stabbing. He had wanted to attack 'any' adult monitor after being reprimanded for kissing his girlfriend, they said. He did not appear to suffer from any 'mental disorder' but appeared 'detached' and expressed 'no regret' for killing one of the school's monitors, all of whom were women, prosecutors said. A moment of silence will be held at midday in schools across France in memory of the victim.
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Daily Mail
French restaurateur 'killed, chopped up and COOKED victim'
A French restaurateur is on trial for allegedly murdering a 57-year-old, butchering him and cooking him. Pizza makers Philippe Schneider, 69, and 45-year old Nathalie Caboubassy stand accused of killing Georges Meichler, a resident of the small French village of Brasc in February 2023. Schneider reportedly made the 'horrific confession' to police after being tracked down following a missing persons report filed by Meichler's daughter. Schneider told cops that during a failed robbery of Meichler's remote home in the woods, the restaurateurs accidentally killed him by pushing him to the ground. Fearing being caught by police, they set about getting rid of the body by chopping it up with a butcher's knife, before starting to scatter parts across the surrounding region. Schneider reportedly told police that he cooked some of Meichler's body in a bowl in his home, in an apparent religious ritual that he discovered during his travels in Nepal. While some parts were spread through the Causses and Rougier regions of France, many were also left in the victim's van, a Citroën Jumpy, that the two restaurateurs were using to get rid of his body. Charred bones were found near Meichler's house, as well as human remains not far from the alleged killers' apartment building. Cops began investigating the murder after Meichler, a reclusive man, failed to check in with his daughter. Police asked nearby residents of the village, who said they saw two people using the dead man's Citroën Jumpy. They found this at the foot of a council building in Camarès, around 24 miles from Brasc. After linking this with the two people, cops began tracking their movements and mobile phone conversations before arresting them on February 10 2023. While Schneider has admitted to killing Meichler, and faces a life behind bars, Caboubassy has consistently denied involvement in the murder. A verdict is set to be handed down on May 22.
Al Jazeera
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
France mosque killing should be investigated as terrorism, says lawyer
NewsFeed France mosque killing should be investigated as terrorism, says lawyer Are Islamophobic crimes less likely to be classed as terrorism offences? The murder of 22-year-old Aboubakar Cisse at a French mosque should be investigated by anti-terror police, according to the lawyer representing the victim's family. He spoke to Al Jazeera's Hind Touissate.
