Driven by his “urges”, the singer Corneliu Munteanu drugged his partner at the time, the singer Meggie Lagacé, whom he met during Star Academy 2004. He then did it again to a man. The fallen artist, who swears he had no “bad intentions,” was sentenced to 100 days in prison on Friday.
“No one has the right to take control of your body and your mind. No one has the right to drug you. This is a serious criminal act. Because without consent, it’s no! It’s your body and it belongs only to you. Period. I chose to file a complaint so that he does not cause any more victims,” wrote Meggie Lagacé on social networks Friday, as she left the courtroom.
The singer had then had the court order protecting her identity lifted.
Corneliu Munteanu, 40, pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of administering a “deleterious substance with the intent to distress or torment such person.” There are two victims in the case: singer Meggie Lagacé in 2013 and a man whose identity is protected in 2016.
According to the facts presented to the court, Corneliu Munteanu insisted one evening that his partner come and drink a glass of rum with him on the balcony. What Meggie Lagacé does not know is that her partner slipped “E powder” – either MDMA or ecstasy – into her drink without her knowledge.
Very quickly, the symptoms appear: her pupils dilate, her heart beats wildly, she is unable to stop talking, she loses track of time. The victim wants to go to the hospital, but Corneliu convinces her that it is not necessary. For months, Meggie Lagacé felt “continuous distress” and ended up confronting her partner who confessed his crime. She then ends their relationship.
PHOTO RÉMI LEMÉE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Corneliu Munteanu with Meggie Lagacé in 2007 when they were a couple.
Why did Corneliu Munteanu do this? This remains nebulous. In the factual framework presented by the Crown prosecutor Me Laurence-Fanny L’Estage, it is indicated that he does not “know why, but that he could not help it”. Before the Court, Corneliu spoke of “ill-guided impulses without bad intention”.
In the second file, Corneliu Munteanu and his partner at the time met a man on a dating site in 2016. On the first date, the trio consumed alcohol and cannabis in moderation. The victim takes several days to recover and does not understand why.
Same scenario on the second date. In the third, the man does not use drugs and sticks to wine. However, he is still dizzy and feels “faded”. His pupils are abnormally dilated. He then confronts Corneliu who admits to having poured “poppers” – MDMA – into his glass of wine.
In the following days, Corneliu wrote to the victim to apologize. He tells her he has a “problem” and is already talking about it with a psychologist.
PHOTO FILED AS PROOF
Corneliu (bottom with black hat) wears a disguise on the Montreal metro while being sought by the police.
Before the Court, the offender appeared to minimize his responsibility. He reiterated that he had no “bad intentions”. “I recognize that my actions were inappropriate and yet it was never my intention to cause harm or betray the trust of anyone. I sincerely apologize,” he said.
Judge Patricia Compagnone set the record straight. “You said your action was inappropriate. I will say that the actions were more than inappropriate, they were illegal and immoral,” she said.
The magistrate endorsed the parties’ common suggestion by imposing a sentence of 100 days in prison, of which two days remain to be served. A two-year probation is added. The judge took into account the consequences of the actions on the victims, including the “palpable distress” of Meggie Lagacé.
In this case, the victims filed a complaint several years after the events. A reminder, according to Judge Compagnone, that “justice has a long arm and is patient”.
In her publication on Instagram, Meggie Lagacé highlights the extent to which the legal process was a “form of therapy” for her. “I was told the words ‘I believe you,’ which did me a lot of good,” she writes. She also thanks the investigators, the lawyers and the CAVAC in her letter.