The man convicted of murder suspected by police of starting a fire in a historic building that killed seven people in Old Montreal last March admitted that he was at the scene of the crime, while adding that someone someone else had started the fire.
Documents from the Correctional Service of Canada citing testimony from Montreal police allege that Denis Bégin was filmed in the vicinity of the building that caught fire before and after the fire. However, police never publicly identified Denis Bégin as a suspect and no charges were laid in this case.
These documents, reported for the first time by The Press, indicate that Denis Bégin denies having started the fire, but claims to have a photo of the person responsible on a secure account. The documents, which were obtained by The Canadian Press, are part of a motion filed by Denis Bégin in Quebec Superior Court opposing his transfer to a maximum security prison; he made this request after being identified by The Press in October in connection with the fatal fire.
Denis Bégin, 63, spent 51 months on the run after escaping from a minimum-security federal prison in February 2019 and was arrested last May after being identified during the fire investigation deadly.
Correctional officials say they were informed by a Montreal police investigator that a vehicle linked to Denis Bégin had been filmed by a surveillance camera on March 16 near the site of the heritage building. The video shows a person walking toward the building, entering and then exiting about five minutes later before driving away. The fire broke out shortly after.
According to the documents, Denis Bégin used another name when he was questioned as a witness by the police. Investigators noticed that he did not look like the man he claimed to be and he was quickly identified as Denis Bégin through the analysis of his fingerprints. He told authorities that he was only a witness to the fire and that he had entered the building to retrieve tools, adding that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
According to correctional documents, Denis Bégin told police that he saw the person who set the building on fire, adding that he had a photo to prove it. He then promised police to release the image in exchange for immunity in the arson case. This offer was refused.
Denis Bégin subsequently returned to his request, offering to collaborate with the police to prove his innocence and improve his chances of obtaining parole. Corrections documents do not provide further details, but say authorities were concerned about his behavior.
“One of two things: either this photo exists and he prefers to exploit the system rather than fulfill his duty as a citizen by revealing the identity of the man who killed 7 people, or this photo does not exist and he is trying to find a way out,” we can read in the documents.
The Montreal police investigator affiliated with this case told correctional officials that Denis Bégin remains a suspect/witness in the arson investigation.
A life sentence for murder
Denis Bégin is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of Ricardo Gizzi on Halloween night in 1993, a crime that earned him the nickname “the Halloween Killer.” Parole eligibility had been set at 10 years, but he failed to secure release before escaping from prison in 2019.
Denis Bégin has a criminal record dating back to 1979 for murder and arson as well as theft, impaired driving and fraud.
The correctional documents also shed some light on his four years on the run, during which he was considered one of the most wanted criminals in Quebec. Denis Bégin told authorities that after his escape from prison, he quickly obtained false documents to start a new life under different names, including Claude Therrien and Maurice Boucher.
He worked for various companies before starting his own maintenance business; he also developed a relationship with a woman who did not know he was on the run from the law.