Pilot Raymond Boulanger, one of the most “significant figures in the criminal history of Quebec and Canada”, died Tuesday of natural causes, we learned The Press.
“He’s a Quebec criminal who had an unusual life and an unusual criminal career,” says Daniel Renaud, a journalist assigned to criminal affairs at The Press and author of the biography Raymond Boulanger – The mercenary pilotpublished in 2013, at the time of Boulanger’s parole.
The man nicknamed “Casey’s pilot” spent nearly 20 years of his life behind bars for having crashed a Convair carrying 4,000 kg of cocaine in Casey, in Haute-Mauricie, on November 18, 1992. The arrest of Raymond Boulanger, who arrived from Colombia, and the seizure of his twin-engine aircraft, which also contained 45 barrels of gasoline, “marked the criminal history of Canada,” says his biographer.
The bush pilot had previously been chased by two Canadian Air Force CF-18s. Aged 76, Boulanger had regained his parole in 2013, but was no longer subject to any conditions at the time of his death.
He had suffered from serious health problems for many years, including cancer. “New medications have been tried and have probably prolonged his life,” says Mr. Renaud. But Tuesday morning, Raymond Boulanger was found dead in his condo in Old Montreal.
“International career”
In the years following the publication of Raymond Boulanger – The mercenary pilot, Daniel Renaud and the protagonist of the work had developed a bond. “At one time we had coffee together about once a month […], but in recent years we saw each other less, he was sicker, he had ups and downs. »
However, he remembers him as a scholar, who was interested in a plethora of subjects – “he was a criminal, yes, but he was a sympathetic criminal”. In addition to his activities with the Colombian cartels, Boulanger worked for the CIA and he has repeatedly claimed to have crossed paths with the famous drug trafficker Pablo Escobar.
COURTESY PHOTO
Raymond Boulanger and Jaime Orlando Restrepo Lujan, former member of the Medellín Cartel, in February 2023, in Montreal
Boulanger, says Mr. Renaud, refused to talk about certain aspects of his criminal career, but “I always believed him when he told me that he occupied a rather important place within the Colombian cartels”. However, many of the mercenary pilot’s assertions remain unverifiable. “He had already told me that the cartels [colombiens] intended to buy an airport in Northern Quebec in the 1990s,” Mr. Renaud gives as an example.
If only for this “international career”, Boulanger carves out a place among the country’s notable criminals, he believes. However, the reporter of The Press do not trivialize the actions taken by Raymond Boulanger. “He tried to import 4,000 kg of cocaine. Cocaine kills people and destroys families, we must not lose sight of that. »
PHOTO ARCHIVES THE PRESS
Raymond Boulanger and his famous wink, after an appearance at the La Tuque courthouse
De Boulanger, who was also the subject of the documentary series Raymond Boulanger’s last flight, he also remembers the manner. “During an appearance at the La Tuque courthouse, he winked at the cameras, and that stuck,” remembers Mr. Renaud.