Amir Benayad, just 17 years old, is the young man who was shot and killed Thursday evening in the Plateau-Mont-Royal sector.
Posted at 9:01 a.m.
Updated at 9:41 a.m.
According to the information that has been obtained so far by The Press, the teenager was hit by more than one bullet in the chest. This is the first murder committed on the territory of the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) in 2022.
Calls had been made to 911 around 6:50 p.m. Thursday evening, concerning an injured person at the intersection of Roy and Rivard streets. The victim was later taken to hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
According to information from the SPVM, one or more suspects fled before the police arrived. There are no arrests at this time. Witnesses told The Press hearing what they believe to be gunshots on several occasions at the time.
A command post was set up by the SPVM at the intersection of Roy and Rivard streets, in order to shed light on the circumstances of this event.
“A tragedy”, says Valérie Plante
The death of the young man quickly reacted on the municipal scene of Montreal. On her Twitter account on Friday morning, the mayor of Montreal Valérie Plante immediately indicated that the shooting death of Amir Benayad “is a tragedy”.
My heart goes out to the family, loved ones and friends of this young man. The SPVM is investigating to understand the turn of events. This kind of incident has no place in Montreal.
Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montreal
In the ranks of the official opposition, the leader of Ensemble Montreal, Aref Salem, offered his condolences to the relatives of the young man, deploring that his death is added to several other young people who died following violent events in the last months in the metropolis.
“Another teenager. Another too many after Meriem Boundaoui, Hani Ouahdi, Jannai Dopwell-Bailey and Thomas Trudel. Other young people after whom we had said: enough is enough. I offer my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Amir Benayad,” said Mr. Salem.
Earlier, several messages of sympathy had been published on social networks by relatives of the teenager. “Long live this young man. I saw you yesterday and now we lost you. Nobody will forget you, fly high, Amir”, wrote a user on Instagram. “I will miss you, bro, fly high and rest in peace “, posted another.
With Daniel Renaud and Florence Morin-Martel