William Keita, one of the five accused of murder in 2e degree following the death of a man in his forties during an altercation on September 11, 2024 in Mont-Joli, left prison in December following his release investigation.
Like the four other accused, he returned to court this Tuesday morning at the Mont-Joli courthouse to set a date for the preliminary investigation which could last up to five days.
The other suspects remain in detention: Bernard-Briand Lewis-Philipps, Zachary Dryden, Patrick Francis and Jerred-Xavier Taylor.
“We still need to obtain certain reports to complete the evidence and we must continue our discussions with the public prosecutor to prepare for the preliminary investigation. We are not ready to fix it today,” said Zachary Dryden’s lawyer, Me Salvatore Sperenza.
Judge Yves Desaulniers proposed February 7 to set the date of the preliminary investigation when calling the roll for special terms, whose cases are scheduled for more than two days.
Mr. Sperenza suggested that his client was going to abandon his investigation into release.
Victim linked to the Hells Angels
The five suspects are charged with murder in 2e degree and carrying a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
The proceedings are being held in English for four of the five accused. William Keita is the only French speaker.
The police arrested the suspects on Highway 20 a little later on the day of the events, in the Rimouski sector.
The victim is André Bourgoin, 46, from Mont-Joli. The latter was identified as a leader of the Mont-Joli network during the major police operation against drug trafficking linked to the Hells Angels, Operation Oursin, carried out in 2019.
Swiss
