Dr. Yann Dazé, however, let it be known that Synthia Bussière had been killed before the children, a scenario which shakes up the version of Mohamad Al-Ballouz, who today identifies as a woman under the name of Levana Ballouz and who assures her defense against a charge of second degree murder of his partner and charge of first degree murder of their two children.
Ms. Ballouz claimed at the Longueuil courthouse on Monday that her partner had killed her children before staging her own death.
It was Dr Yann Dazé who performed the autopsies on the three bodies of the victims. The expert spoke of a “blank autopsy” regarding the deaths of Zac and Eliam. This medical term is used when it is impossible to determine the cause of death.
The pathologist clarified that no trace of smoke was detected in the children’s lungs, nor any trace of carbon monoxide in their blood. There was no alcohol or drugs in their little bodies either. Dr. Dazé added that the absence of soot in the respiratory tract suggests that the children were not breathing at the time of the fire in the condo. Furthermore, their bodies did not show signs of violence or burns.
Although it is impossible to determine the cause of the children’s deaths, Dr. Yann Dazé is convinced that these were not natural deaths. In court, he argued that the children could have died, for example, of suffocation, drowning or hypothermia.
A violent death for the mother
Regarding Synthia Bussières, the pathologist said Monday that everything suggests that the 38-year-old woman fought for her life before being killed, in particular because of the 11 defense wounds she had on her hands.
The woman was stabbed 23 times, including in the neck and behind the head.
Remember that the Crown’s theory is that the father stabbed his partner to death, then killed his 2 sons, tried to clean the apartment, started a fire at the foot of the bed and tried to take life by ingesting windshield washer fluid.
The jury trial is expected to last six weeks. It will be suspended from December 24, 2024 to January 6, 2025 during judicial holidays.
In total, 34 witnesses have been heard since the start of the trial, including firefighters, paramedics, investigators and various experts.
