A 17-year-old teenager from Laval’s Vimont district who succumbed to a gunshot wound sustained in a park behind a school during the early morning hours Thursday following a shooting incident has been identified.
According to the Laval Police, it was just a quarter hour past midnight on Thursday when residents in the quiet, semi-rural neighbourhood heard what they later described as explosive sounds and called the police department.
Witnesses told media later that they heard at least six shots. While they thought at first it might be fireworks, they then heard people screaming as well as voices speaking loudly.
By the time a squad car from the LPD reached the scene at the corner of Saint-Elzéar Blvd. and Bédard St. just a few minutes later, they found one of the teens sprawled on playground equipment, unconscious and suffering from a gunshot wound. Although the teen was transported to hospital, he was declared dead some time after arrival.
A second teen, this one 18 years old, was found shortly afterwards by the police in the same park, which is located behind École des Explorateurs. He too had suffered a gunshot wound, although not as seriously. While the police were able to get some basic information from him, they were unable to determine the identity of the shooter.
While the police say that neither of the victims had any previous run-ins with the law, the Montreal daily La Presse reported on Thursday that the LPD isn’t completely ruling out the possibility the incident was the result of a confrontation between the two teens which turned violent.
On Friday, La Presse identified the 17-year-old youth who succumbed to his gunshot wound as Dario Frometa Valdes. The Laval Police are continuing to investigate.
