The Laval Police Dept. says it is initiating steps to deal with a rise in violent crime among youths as the summer season is set to begin while minors are increasingly becoming mixed up in crimes involving the use of firearms.
According to data released by the LPD earlier this week, more than 40 per cent of armed violence cases in the first quarter of 2025 involved minors between the ages of 14 and 17.
From Jan. 1 last year to March 31 in 2025, 20 per cent of people arrested or suspected in cases of firearms-related incidents were minors, with most of these cases involving criminal gangs.
After noting a rise in firearm discharges last year when there were 25 such incidents, the LPD now reports a moderate decrease in the first four months of 2025.
Since the end of March, there were four firearms discharge incidents, compared to six during the same period a year earlier.
“Over the past few years, our police department has made the fight against gun-related urban violence a priority, in response to a marked upsurge in events in Laval,” said Karine Ménard, the LPD’s deputy director, who is in charge of criminal investigations.
