A 31-year-old man is accused of insulting the body of a missing young mother who was finally found hidden in a wooded area in Hemmingford, in Montérégie.
Handcuffed on his wrists and a gray blanket on his shoulders, Nicholas Gravel briefly appeared at the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield courthouse on Friday noon.
For the moment, the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions has only filed one charge, namely of having violated the dignity of the body of a 29-year-old woman, whose identity is protected by court order.
Nicholas Gravel is accused of indignity to the body of a woman who had been reported missing, in Hemmingford.
Nicholas Gravel Facebook
According to the denunciation, the offense occurred between September 15 and 21.
“At the moment I cannot say anything about my son. The only thing I can say is that it is a complete tragedy for everyone,” said Sherry Brunet, the mother of the accused, in a short appeal in English. with The Journal.
Several police officers were collecting evidence in connection with the death of a missing woman in Hemmingford on Thursday, September 26.
Photo Agence QMI, Maxime Deland
The victim and mother of a toddler was last seen on Saturday September 21 leaving her residence to go walking in the woods behind her home.
Significant police resources and several volunteers were deployed to comb the area in the following days to find her.
Suspicions
Quickly in the investigation, Gravel found himself in the sights of the police, but they did not rule out the theory that the young woman could have decided to end her life.
Gravel was also seen purchasing around fifteen bags of soil in a store in the area the day before the victim’s disappearance, which aroused several suspicions in the days that followed.
While the entire community was at work, Nicholas Gravel took no part in the search. He seemed “unfit”, according to our information.
The 30-year-old is said to be struggling with drug and alcohol problems, we learned.
A police officer from the Sûreté du Québec on Thursday, September 26 in Hemmingford, not far from where the victim’s body was found.
Photo Agence QMI, Maxime Deland
However, it was crucial information obtained by the police early Thursday that led them to go to “a very specific location” in the woods located behind the deceased’s residence.
Gravel was then handcuffed by the Sûreté du Québec, who did not confirm, at that time, his degree of involvement in the death of the young woman.
The 30-year-old remains detained and is due back in court next week.
-With the collaboration of Maxime Deland, Agence QMI
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