The verdict will soon be known in the trial of Mohamad Al Ballouz, accused of the murders of his wife and his two boys, as the jury began deliberating Saturday morning at the Longueuil courthouse.
Judge Éric Downs gave his final instructions to the jury in this case of triple murder, which occurred in Brossard on the night of September 24 to 25, 2022.
Defendant Mohamad Al Ballouz, 38, now identifies as a woman under the name Levana Ballouz.
According to the Crown, Ballouz first inflicted 23 stab wounds on his partner, then suffocated his two children with a pillow, and finally set fire to the incriminating objects.
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The jurors, now sequestered, deliberate at the Longueuil courthouse.
Photo : - / Simon-Marc Charron
Ballouz also ingested windshield washer fluid in an attempt to end his life, according to evidence presented during the trial.
Dispatched to the crime scene after a fire alarm was triggered in the building, firefighters discovered the body of Synthia Bussières, who was bathing in a pool of blood in the bathroom. The children were found unconscious in a bed, lying on either side of their father.
He, who had injuries during his arrest, had to be hospitalized before being questioned by investigators.
Ballouz, without a lawyer, provided his own defense and denied the Crown’s version of the facts during the pleadings, instead accusing his wife of having taken the lives of their two boys.
The mother of the two children worked for a Montreal town planning firm.
Ballouz faces four charges: unpremeditated murder of his partner Synthia Bussières (38 years old), premeditated murders of his sons Zack and Eliam Al Ballouz (respectively 2 and 5 years old), and arson.
According to the Crown, the verdict of the jurors, now sequestered, should fall on Saturday, Sunday or even at the beginning of the week.
With information from Gabrielle Proulx and Amélie Desmarais
