Ste. Geneviève shooting may be gang-related

A 22-year old Ste. Geneviève resident who is in stable condition at a hospital after being shot Monday night at around 10 p.m. at his apartment on Terrasse Richelieu may have been the victim of a gang-related crime. "It's an event that seems to be related to the world of street gangs," Montreal Police media relations officer Olivier Lapointe told The Chronicle, falling short of confirming the victim is known to police.

There are two different versions of exactly what transpired yesterday. Lapointe's colleague, Annie Lemieux, said this morning the victim was surprised as he returned to his apartment at around 10 p.m. "He came face to face with the suspect who fired a gunshot in his direction," Lemieux said. "The suspect fled the scene before police officers got there," she added, "so no arrests were made in this case."

However, a neighbour of the youth in question maintained that was not quite what happened. "(The shooter) knocked on my door at first, he had the wrong address," the neighbour said, speaking on condition of anonymity as he relaxed on a lawn chair with some friends in the apartment building's parking lot, hiding under the tenement's shade from the sun. "My girlfriend answered the door," he said. When the would-be assailant saw her, he muttered "wrong address," turned his gun toward his actual intended victim's closed apartment door, and shot through it thrice before making his escape. "She already spoke to the police," he said, "and gave them the suspect's description."

Three small, round holes could indeed be seen on the door in question when The Chronicle went to have a look earlier this afternoon.

Next, the victim, who was struck by at least one bullet wound in his upper body according to Lemieux, staggered unto Terrasse Richelieu and sought refuge at a friend's apartment on adjacent De Jouvence Street.

A certain section of De Jouvence runs parallel to Terrasse Richelieu. The section is accessible by foot through parking lots of graffiti-scrawled apartment buildings on Terrasse.

Richard Gentile, who lives in a building facing the side of the street where the shooting took place, said he heard a lot of commotion last night at around 10:15 p.m. "I saw about 10-12 cops in the parking lot (of that building)," he said, making a revolver shape with his fingers and pointing upwards to indicate some police were glancing at the third floor of the building, where the shooting occurred.

Gentile said he was unaware of any past history with police on this street. "Last week, I heard a lot of glass breaking from that same apartment," he only added.

But for at least one resident, the events are enough to make her pack her bags. "All I know is I'm moving out of here," said Kim McLean, who settled in a building to the left of the scene of the crime in March. "Every day, there's something (on Terrasse)," she added, stating police are frequently in the area. "You're watching a Disney movie with your kids and you hear gunshots? What is this, the Bronx?" She added.

The police investigation is ongoing. Earlier today what appeared to be plainclothes police officers sat in a civilian car in front of the apartment building in question, with some of its occupants entering the vehicle to give their testimony. "Certainly the police today continue to work on it," said Lapointe. "It's the street gang unit that's on it," he said.

Another shooting occurred later yesterday night at Orléans Street in Pierrefonds/Roxboro, where a house was riddled with bullet holes. Police do not know if there is a link between the two shootings.