Cigarette burns, gun pointed at the head, belt shots. A Montrealer who hoped for clemency from the judge to avoid his deportation was instead sentenced to 30 months in prison for “particularly cruel and humiliating” abuse inflicted on a vulnerable newcomer. Houssam Mirzak had also made fun of his “very restrictive” conditions of release by violently attacking the victim.
Posted at 8:00 a.m.
” [La victime] is trapped in the cycle of domestic violence. The crimes committed by the offender are intended to control and dominate her. He also seeks through this violence to obtain the submission of the victim. Not only does he beat her with his hands and feet, he burns her with a cigarette, hits her with his belt to finally point a gun near her head, threatening her, “explains judge Alexandre Dalmau in his decision handed down on September 8th.
Houssam Mirzak was found guilty of 18 charges last May.
Between August and November 2021, the 22-year-old severely beat his girlfriend, a young woman “particularly vulnerable” because of her precarious immigration status. He also hit his girlfriend’s friend.
In a first incident, at the end of August, Houssam Mirzak pulled the victim’s hair and struck him in the face near the ear with his closed hand. The episodes of violence are then regular and continue to intensify. Once, Houssam Mirzak takes a knife, puts it on the table and says to the victim: “You know what I can do with this. »
Despite everything, the young victim loved the accused and believed that the violent acts would stop. That was not the case. At the end of September, the young woman believes her last hour has come. Houssam Mirzak grabs her by the hair, hits her with his hands, then brandishes a firearm: “You’ll see what will happen if someone comes through the door. »
The victim then managed to contact the police by notifying someone by text message. Houssam Mirzak takes out his firearm and points it in the direction of the victim’s head. The police then intervene and find that the weapon only shoots lead, but looks like a real handgun.
Released anyway
Despite the seriousness of the charges, Houssam Mirzak was released under very strict conditions. Nevertheless, he “blithely” violates these by seeing the victim every day, then committing other assaults. Back in prison, he continues to telephone her.
Arrived at the age of 15 from Morocco, Houssam Mirzak now risks being expelled from the country. Last May, the permanent resident was sentenced to 60 days in prison for assault with a weapon and criminal harassment. He will likely be subject to “inadmissibility”. To avoid losing their right to appeal this removal order, the defense was asking for a sentence of six months in prison, less a day, while the Crown was asking for 36 months in prison.
Judge Dalmau considered many aggravating factors to justify this severe sentence: the marital context, the desire to submit and dominate the victim, the repetition and severity of the acts, the vulnerability of the victim. A sentence of less than six months would further undermine public confidence, analyzes the judge.
” Courts […] keep reminding how violence against intimate partners is an important societal problem. In most cases, the objectives of denunciation and deterrence must be prioritized,” argues the judge.
Me Philippe Vallières-Roland represented the public ministry, while Me Alexandra Semillé defended the accused.