A former soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder who armed himself “to defend himself, to repel attacks” was sentenced to 15 months in prison for possession of prohibited weapons.
Frédéric Lauzier left the Canadian Armed Forces due to physical injuries linked to his missions, but also because of the psychological problems that the deployments left him with.
Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, the ex-soldier stored firearms and certain prohibited devices, such as high-capacity magazines and silencers, at his home. He also had a sawed-off weapon discovered by the RCMP when a search was carried out at his home in 2019.
“The sawed off weapon, the pre-sentence report shows that it is linked to hypervigilance disorders. He wrongly believed that it was to defend himself, to repel attacks,” explained Lauzier’s lawyer, Mr.e Patrice Paré, at the time of the imposition of his client’s sentence.
In-laws in Ukraine
The accused had admitted his guilt to three counts related to firearms or restricted weapons in the fall of 2023. As a result of these pleas, several other counts that had been laid, around thirty in total, were abandoned by the public prosecutor.
The sentence arises from a common suggestion of both parties in the case.
Me Paré explained that his client was now being followed by specialists and that he intended to continue this journey. He is also medicated.
The accused is also the breadwinner of his family, he who married a woman from Ukraine, met during a deployment. He frequently sends money to his in-laws, undermined by the horrors of war since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
To do this, Lauzier went into business, managing apartment buildings.
“He traded the weapons for the numbers and the calculator,” his lawyer imagined.
In view of this information, judge Josée Lemieux endorsed the common suggestion and sentenced Frédéric Lauzier to a sentence of 15 months of detention. The accused will also be placed on probation for a period of two years after the expiration of his sentence.