The City of Laval was among several Montreal-area municipalities and districts where police arrested 13 suspects while seizing illicit drugs and firearms during a major police crackdown on extortion against restaurants.
More than 150 officers were involved in the operation led by the Montreal Police last week, which was carried out with assistance from the Sûreté du Québec.
This was after several restaurants in the Greater Montreal area, including some in Laval, were targeted by arsonists and other violent acts over the last few months.
In all, searches were carried out in Laval, Dollard-des-Ormeaux and Châteauguay, as well as in the Montreal boroughs of Lachine, LaSalle, Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles, Sud-Ouest, Verdun and Ville-Marie.
Police say three main suspects, men aged 25, 34 and 39, were directly involved in a shooting at a restaurant on Sainte-Catherine Street in Montreal on Feb. 12.
During the searches, officers seized three firearms, one pound of cocaine, one pound of crystal meth, thousands of speed pills and nearly $120,000 in cash.
Judge goes easy on Laval ‘grandparent’ fraudster who stole nearly $90,000
A judge at the Palais de Justice de Laval went easy last week on a woman convicted of defrauding 11 senior citizens out of almost $90,000 in a grandparent fraud scheme.
Hajar Benbouhoud, 24, a former flight attendant who took part in the fraud scheme in July 2021, won’t have a criminal record after Judge Simon B. Dolci granted her a legal discharge.
In grandparent fraud, criminals posing as bank employees or as legal representatives tell the victim (a senior citizen) a false scenario to get them to pay out large sums or to give up their bank debit card.
Benbouhoud played the role of the person who goes to the home of the victim to pick up the cash or banking card.
By the time the police caught up with Benbouhoud, she had personally made around $4,000 in three weeks taking part in the scheme. After searching her car, they found an electric taser gun and 24 pieces of false ID.
She managed to convince the judge that she turned her life around since first being charged. She is on probation for two years, must complete 240 hours of community work and must reimburse $4,015 to victims.
Recent LFD fire calls
The Laval Fire Dept. was called upon to provide assistance at a fire that broke out at a well-known health spa located on Curé Labelle Blvd. just north of Laval’s territory along Route 117 in Rosemère.
LFD firefighters were asked to assist firefighters from Blainville, Sainte-Thérèse and Boisbriand at Le Finlandais during the early morning of June 3.
The source of the blaze is believed to have been a Canada Goose that collided with overhead electrical wiring and then plummeted onto the roof of the spa, sparking a fire.
An arsonist is believed to be responsible for a fire that broke out in the early morning hours on June 3 at a home on Edmond St. in Fabreville near the corner of Dagenais Blvd.
A hedge as well as a vehicle were set on fire, after which the flames spread to a house. In the end, the firefighters were able to prevent the flames from spreading over the roof to the rest of the dwelling.
A fire that broke out on June 7 at a home on Louis St. in Chomedey did extensive damage. An image furnished by the Association des Pompiers de Laval showed the one-storey home in a heavily-damaged state. The LFD didn’t furnish any additional information as to the monetary value of the damage.
Two homeless after fire on Galarneau St. in Sainte-Rose
A fire on May 26 at a home on Galarneau St. south of de la Renaissance Blvd. in Sainte-Rose left two residents homeless temporarily. The blaze, called in to 9-1-1 around 8:55 pm, is tentatively being blamed on a piece of ventilation equipment that malfunctioned. A total of 22 firefighters in six units responded.
