A young man guilty of the murder of Jimmy Méthot claims to remember neither the circumstances of the murder nor of having pleaded guilty and nor even… the name of his victim. This Crown witness was extremely refractory on Wednesday at the trial of Véronique Manceaux, accused of the first degree murder of Jimmy Méthot.
“I don’t remember”, “I don’t know”, “No”
The 20-year-old man contented himself with such monosyllabic responses on Wednesday while being questioned by Crown prosecutor Me Jasmine Guillaume. No matter the questions, the young man was reluctant to answer. He even said he didn’t recognize his own initials in a document. As he was a teenager at the time of the events, he cannot be identified.
The young man half-heartedly conceded that he had been sentenced to nine years of “juvenile” detention for the murder of Jimmy Méthot after pleading guilty to first-degree murder. What was his involvement in this murder? The young man claims not to remember it.
However, he admitted under oath many facts in this case by pleading guilty, underlined Mr.e Guillaume. “I don’t remember,” the witness replied in English. His memory problems don’t stop there. The young murderer says he does not even know who the accused, Véronique Manceaux, is, or who was present in the house on the fateful evening.
“I remember going to a woman’s house and being arrested for murder a few days later,” he testified. This was his longest response of the morning.
PHOTO FILED IN COURT
Véronique Manceaux’s living room
According to the Crown’s theory, Jimmy Méthot was murdered by Véronique Manceaux on September 6, 2021 in her residence in Lachine. That night, the teenager (the witness), a woman, the accused, Everett Roger Clayton and the victim were there for a reason not specified to the jury.
During the evening, a conflict broke out between Véronique Manceaux and Jimmy Méthot. The accused and the young witness then allegedly beat the victim.
At one point, Jimmy Méthot managed to flee, but the teenager caught up with him. The attackers offered the victim a “last meal”. Desperate, Jimmy Méthot tried to flee again. “I don’t want to die like this,” he begged. It was during his flight that Véronique Manceaux ultimately stabbed him, according to the Crown.
PHOTO FILED IN COURT
A can of chicken pot pie was found at the crime scene.
While Jimmy Méthot was dying, the accused made him drink a flammable liquid, according to the Prosecution. In the following days, Véronique Manceaux and her accomplices cleaned up the scene. The accused will eventually be arrested.
PHOTO FILED AS PROOF
Charcoal lighter fluid was found at the crime scene.
The young man’s testimony continues Wednesday afternoon.