RSS FeedMontrealers Riot After Police Fatally Shoot Teenager
In a situation reminiscent of the Paris riots of 2005, an angry mob took to the streets of Montreal last night, looting stores and attacking emergency services workers after police fatally wounded a teenager on Saturday.
According to police, in the course of making an arrest in Henri Bourassa Park, several officers were surrounded by a large group of teenagers. The officers felt threatened, and when some of the youths charged at them, the police opened fire. Three were shot.
One of those shot, 18-year-old Freddy Alberto Villanueva, later died in hospital. The other two are in stable condition.
Diana Serrano, a friend and classmate of Villanueva, said the youths were all friends from childhood who were just protecting themselves:
“I know there are gangs here and there are drugs going on, but … they were only playing marbles, so it’s really not fair what they did. He didn’t sell (drugs), he didn’t smoke, he didn’t drink. … He was really smart. … It’s heartbreaking.”
(Source: Montreal Gazette)
The neighbourhood of Montreal North is home to many immigrants, especially from the Caribbean. Villanueva was Honduran. This has prompted some residents to question whether the shooting was racially-motivated.
The Sûreté du Québec, the provincial police force, immediately launched an inquiry into the shooting.
However, assurances of a swift and impartial investigation were not enough to cool the pent-up anger of the community. Rioting began on Sunday night when protesters set cars on fire, and then threw bottles at responding firefighters.
Some of the rioters then began to smash windows and loot stores. About 20 businesses, one of them a butcher shop, were broken into:
Men and women of all ages could be seen running down the street clutching TVs, cigarette cartons and slabs of meat.
A backdrop of three-metre high fireballs from about a dozen flaming propane tanks illuminated the looters’ paths as they headed down the darkened streets.
An elderly woman carrying her newly acquired stereo laughed with her friend as they made their escape.
Some looters stood on the sidewalk and watched the action, drinking freshly swiped beer from the store.
(Source: CP)
According to police, three officers have been injured in addition to an ambulance worker who was struck in the head by a Molotov cocktail.
On some streets, members of the mob even took up arms and fired on the officers. One of the injured police was shot in the leg and is now recovering in hospital.
“It was sick,” said Patrick Parent, who lives on the street behind the store.
“I had a guy shoot a gun next to me, that’s how bad it was. The guy shot two shots. I ran home. It was terrifying. This was bad. I never thought I would see this in my life.”
(Source: CP)
As of today, calm had been restored to the neighbourhood following the deployment of more than 500 Montreal Police and Sûreté officers.
