Kevin Rochebrun and Steve Emmanuel Barthelemy, accused of attempted murder against Leonardo Rizzuto, youngest son of the late Montreal mafia godfather, Vito Rizzuto, pleaded guilty at the Joliette courthouse Friday afternoon.
Rizzuto was shot while in his SUV on Highway 440, near Highway 13, in Laval, in the middle of the afternoon of March 15, 2023.
Rochebrun, 33, who was the shooter, admitted his guilt to counts of attempted murder, being in a vehicle knowing that a prohibited firearm was inside and breaking an order.
Judge Éric Côté of the Court of Quebec endorsed a joint suggestion from the Prosecution and the Defense and sentenced him to ten years in penitentiary. But subtracting the period of time spent in preventive detention, he has just over eight and a half years left to serve.
Barthelemy, 35, who was the driver, pleaded guilty to one count of discharging a firearm without regard for the life of a person and being in a vehicle knowing he was there a prohibited firearm.
He was sentenced to five years in prison, but has just over 3 and a half years left to serve.
Betrayed by technology
The prosecution prosecutor, Me Isabelle Poulin, of the Serious Crime and Special Affairs Bureau, read a brief summary of the facts in which it was explained that it was evidence of cell phone geolocation, GPS data from the vehicles used by the accused and cameras surveillance, which made it possible to identify, arrest and accuse Rochebrun and Barthelemy.
Two vehicles which the convicts used – black and red Porsche Macan SUVs – to monitor Rizzuto and to carry out the attack, were rented by a third party to the Loue la vie business in Laval a few days before the attempted murder.
The name of this third person does not appear in the summary of the facts, but it is Francesco Del Balso, former member of the Rizzuto clan rallied to the bikers, who was assassinated less than three months after the attack against the son cadet of the former mafia godfather.
During the days preceding the attack, and on the very day of the event, the condemned exchanged the two Porsches on at least two occasions at the Loue la vie store.
The firearm was found the following May 3, in a ditch on Montée Champagne in Laval, and experts concluded that it was indeed the firearm that had been used in the attack.
Satisfactory sentences for the DPCP
Me Poulin considered as a mitigating factor the fact that the two accused pleaded guilty quickly, thus avoiding the holding of a trial which was expected to last two to three months.
Barthelemy has no criminal history while Rochebrun has several.
In August 2016, Kevin Rochebrun and another individual were involved in an attack against another Montreal mafia actor, Marco Pizzi.
Their van slammed into the back of Pizzi’s car. Under the impact, the airbags of the suspects’ vehicle deployed, causing Rochebrun’s nose to bleed, which left behind his DNA which betrayed him.
Rochebrun pleaded guilty to one count of gun possession following that case and was sentenced to five years in 2017.
At the end of the hearing, Me Poulin said the victim in this case, Leonardo Rizzuto, did not want to cooperate and that through his lawyer, he indicated he did not wish to speak.
“For us, this settlement amply satisfies the ends of Justice. The ten-year sentence recognizes the greater moral responsibility of Rochebrun, who was the shooter, and his criminal record. And a five-year sentence for Barthelemy, who had no criminal record, is a significant sentence,” reacted Me Poulin, who was assisted by Me Amanda Santache in this file.
Me Marie-Hélène Giroux represented Kevin Rochebrun and Me Jean-Marc Tremblay, Steve Emmanuel Barthelemy.
To contact Daniel Renaud, call 514 285-7000, ext. 4918, write to [email protected] or write to the postal address of The Press.