For the second time in two months, an office building in northern Laval belonging to the spouse of Tony Accurso’s daughter was ravaged by fire. This is a new attack in the series that has affected the Accurso family since last summer.
A fire spread overnight from Friday to Saturday in an office building located at 1410, rue de Jaffa, in the north of Laval.
Less than two months earlier, on December 15, Laval police had received a call for an arson attack in the same building, which is partly owned by companies linked to Karol Fortin, the spouse of Lisa Ray, daughter of Tony Accurso.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
On December 15, 2022, Laval police received a call for a fire in the same building.
At this time, “an incendiary object [avait] was thrown into the window of the south-east facade, ”explained Stéphanie Beshara, spokesperson for the Laval police. The file had been transferred to the Major Crimes Investigation Service of the Sûreté du Québec (SQ).
According to our information, the trade was again the target of a Molotov cocktail last night. The place was hit around 3 a.m., confirmed Stéphane Tremblay, spokesperson for the SQ, on Saturday. It is indeed an arson, although the circumstances of the event have not been made public.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The building located at 1410 rue de Jaffa after the fire on Saturday
On site, where a security perimeter has been established, it is possible to observe part of the facade of the building affected by the flames. According to the photos, it seems to be the same place that was affected during the first fire.
The investigation was transferred to the Major Crimes Investigation Service of the SQ, in collaboration with the Laval Police Service, confirmed Mr. Tremblay at the end of the day. A fire scene technician from the SQ was dispatched to the scene. In the morning, the agents of the two police forces were activated on the scene, in a biting cold.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Officers from the Sûreté du Québec and the Laval Police Department are collaborating in the investigation.
An adjacent building reached by mistake
The neighboring building, located at 1400, rue de Jaffa, had also been the target of an attempted fire the previous night, that of Thursday to Friday. According to our information, it would be an error, the criminals having taken the wrong address.
On a window of this building, we can see the impact of a projectile. The interior of the place was not reached. The window was boarded up with a wooden board during the passage of The Press.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The neighboring building at 1410 rue de Jaffa was the target of an attempted fire.
This industrial sector along Highway 15 brings together several companies. A local trader told The Press don’t worry about your business. Another, whose building is close to the one that was burned, is much more worried. “I don’t want to be mixed up in their business, he said, but if it happened twice, it could happen three times. If there was a major fire, would it affect my building? »
The Accurso family targeted
The residences and vehicles of Tony Accurso’s children have been the target of arson and even gunfire starting last July.
The Press revealed Friday that the main hypothesis of the investigators of the Major Crimes of the Sûreté du Québec for the series of extortion attempts against Tony Accurso would be linked to a man sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, who would order these crimes from the penitentiary where he is incarcerated.
The investigation into the misdeeds suffered by other members of the Accurso family last year would, however, be considered separate. The sponsor(s) and author(s) would not necessarily be the same.
The main theory put forward by the Lac des Deux-Montagnes Police Board last fall was a business dispute between members of the Accurso family, but the investigation is ongoing.