“I am thinking of the victim, but also of the customers and servers who witnessed this. It’s terrible, ”laments Geneviève Dufour, an employee of the Frite So restaurant, which is located just a few steps from the Napoli pizzeria.
Posted at 12:39 p.m.
Updated at 2:10 p.m.
It is in this last commercial establishment that Diego Fiorita, aged 50, fell under the bullets on Tuesday. It was around 1:30 p.m. and the customer, who is a regular at the restaurant, had just sat down. A puddle of blood was still visible on the floor of the restaurant in the morning, when The Press.
Even if everything indicates that the victim would have been targeted, the event remains anxiety-provoking, believes Mme From the oven. “It was at lunchtime when the restaurants are crowded. It doesn’t look like we’re going to worry about getting shot in Montreal, ”she says in an interview.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
A puddle of blood was still visible on the floor of the Napoli pizzeria in the morning, when The Press.
At the Dei Compari pizzeria, located opposite the restaurant where the tragedy occurred, employees deplore this isolated event. “We don’t want people to stop eating here. It never happens here and it’s worrying. But I’m trying to think of something else this morning”, explains one of the cooks at The Press.
It is not yet known whether the two events, which occurred only about thirty minutes apart, would have a link. One thing is certain: this outbreak of violence by firearms, which does not seem to be fading in the metropolis, continues to stir up the concerns of residents.
A few hours before his death, Diego Fiorita had filmed himself and posted a video on his Facebook page. “I take this opportunity to wish everyone a good day. We start with the morning coffee, it feels good. I love life. So good, so beautiful, so pleasant”, he said then, insisting on the fact that “there is just one to live, so do not miss it”.
Quebec actually has more
In response to the events, Premier François Legault held a meeting on Wednesday afternoon with the Secretary General of the Government, Yves Ouellet, the Minister of Public Security, Geneviève Guilbault, and his Deputy Minister Brigitte Pelletier. He also spoke with Mayor Valérie Plante.
“We will not let Montreal turn into the Far West,” said press secretary Nadia Talbot on Wednesday. On Twitter, Mr. Legault also wrote in the afternoon that his government “will not skimp on the means to restore order and protect citizens”. “We will support our police forces to put an end to this violence,” insisted Mr. Legault.
Minister Guilbault had already spoken with Valérie Plante on Tuesday. “The safety of Quebecers is our top priority. We have invested more than $200 million in the fight against armed violence, and are open to doing more to support our police officers and protect citizens,” promised the minister on Wednesday, after her meeting with Mr. Legault.
Valérie Plante went to meet merchants on rue Saint-Denis at the end of the day, “to assure them that the SPVM is hard at work conducting the investigation”. “Since yesterday, I have been in constant contact with the SPVM and the governments of Quebec and Canada regarding the armed events that took place in the city. Safety is a priority,” she reiterated on Wednesday.
At the Montreal Police Brotherhood, President Yves Francœur fired red bullets at the Plante administration on Wednesday. “Our police officers are very dissatisfied with the support shown, whether in terms of staff or equipment. Everything is always complicated. I have been president for a long time and there has never been so much resentment against an administration, ”he said on the airwaves of 98.5.
Recall that a man in his forties was first shot at around 12:55 p.m. in the parking lot of the shopping center located on Rockland Road, near Sloane Avenue, in Mount Royal. The 44-year-old man, injured by gunshot wounds, succumbed to his injuries, sources confirmed to The Press. This is Maxime Lenoir, an individual linked to bikers, according to our sources.
With Daniel Renaud, The Press