A judge refused Wednesday to release one of the men accused of the murder of Meriem Boundaoui, a 15-year-old girl, victim of a crime by firearm which had shocked Quebec in February 2021.
The teenager was a passenger in a vehicle when she was shot in the Montreal borough of Saint-Léonard. A man near the car was also shot, but survived.
Aymane Bouadi, 27, had asked to be released pending trial, but the Crown had opposed his release.
On Wednesday, at the Montreal courthouse, Judge Éric Downs of the Superior Court refused to grant his request.
Bouadi was arrested in June 2022 and has been in detention ever since. Another man, Salim Taoubi, 26, was also arrested and charged in this case and remains imprisoned. He did not ask to be released, confirmed the Crown prosecutor in this criminal case, Me Nadia Bérubé.
Both men are charged with one count of first degree murder — the most serious felony in the Criminal Code — as well as four counts of attempted murder with a firearm.
In his detailed decision, the judge recalls that an “innocent victim” perished on February 7, 2021 in what was called a ” drive by shooting (or drive-by shooting) on different people.
“This gratuitous gun violence has shocked the population. It must be said that armed violence has increased significantly in Montreal. The aberrant ease with which some obtain weapons and use them shakes the community”, writes the magistrate in his 64-page judgment, most of which is subject to a publication ban and therefore cannot be disclosed.
The magistrate explained that it was up to the accused “to demonstrate that his pre-trial detention is not necessary to ensure his presence in court, to protect the public and not to undermine public confidence in the administration of justice”, recalling the criteria of the Criminal Code. On Wednesday, he ruled that Bouadi has not established that his release is justified. He therefore ordered his detention in custody.
Members of Meriem Boundaoui’s family, present Wednesday at the Montreal courthouse, were “satisfied and relieved” after hearing the judge’s decision, said Me Bérubé.
It is rare for a person accused of murder to be released, given the seriousness of the crime. This happens sometimes, however, recalled the Crown prosecutor, indicating that each file “is unique. »