Two new arson attacks occurred in less than an hour in Montreal overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, heavily damaging eight vehicles. The two targeted locations had already been the subject of similar attacks in the past, reports the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM).
The first fire broke out in the borough of Lachine around 1:30 a.m., on rue du Pacifique, in a store parking lot. This is the third time that a suspicious fire has occurred at this location, reports SPVM spokesperson Sabrina Gauthier.
A total of four vehicles were damaged in this event, which caused no injuries. No damage to the building is reported.
Firefighters intervened less than an hour later, around 2:15 a.m., for another fire on rue Lebeau, in Saint-Laurent.
This is the fourth time an arson attack has occurred at this location, police said. Traces of accelerant were located on site. This time again, four vehicles were targeted.
No arrests were reported in these two events.
“It is still too early to determine if the two fires are connected”, specifies the agent Gauthier.
In addition, the Service de police de Laval (SPL), the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) and the SPVM are currently uniting to fight against threats and arson targeting businesses located in their respective territories.
As of May 15, 37 arrests have been reported, including 18 in recent weeks. In addition, multiple searches led to the seizure of large quantities of narcotics, firearms, money and proceeds of crime. Investigations are still ongoing and could lead to further searches and arrests in the coming months.
Since last year, a total of 85 events related to this problem have been recorded on the respective territories of the three police forces.