Barely a few days after receiving a second parole, a repeat offender sentenced to six years in prison for possession of a firearm is now considered to be on illegal release.
Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) confirms that it has issued a suspension warrant against Faouazi Harmali on November 14, 2023.
A sheet identifying his level of dangerousness as “high” appeared on the website of the Crime Stoppers organization, which lists criminals in a situation of “illegal freedom”. A $2,000 reward is being offered for information leading to his arrest.
Even though this form indicates that the offender “is not armed,” the notice specifies that the subject was armed during his previous crimes.
Indeed, Faouzi Harmali, 31, was arrested in possession of a loaded handgun in August 2019, following an investigation by the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) into an attempted murder committed against gang leader Arsène Mompoint, who has since been murdered.
On August 11, Harmali was released after two thirds of his sentence, as provided by law, under severe conditions.
Since then, the police have noted problematic actions. Harmali had notably been seen in an area of the city where he was not allowed to go, in addition to being arrested in the company of individuals with criminal backgrounds, including a former accomplice.
So much so that the authorities had had enough and suspended his statutory release on August 22. His release officers then recommended that his parole be revoked altogether and that he return behind bars.
Benefit of the doubt
The parole commissioner responsible for looking into his case emphasized that the study of Harmali’s file “highlighted major personal and social adaptation difficulties”.
However, convinced that a repeat offense on his part, before the expiration of his sentence, would not present an unacceptable risk for society, this same commissioner ruled that Harmali had not violated his conditions.
In a decision rendered at the beginning of November, he even gave him “the benefit of the doubt” by canceling the suspension of his parole.
A few days later, Harmali no longer respected the conditions of this new parole, so that the authorities now consider him to be “illegally free”.
Before being sentenced, Harmali was described as the head of a network trafficking prohibited items using drones in prison, we read in the commissioner’s decision. He was the subject of eight weapons prohibition orders in total.
He has an extensive criminal history, including robbery, armed assault, break and enter, assault, extortion, possession of a prohibited or restricted weapon, home invasion, drug trafficking, theft, fraud and obstruction of a peace officer.