Coroner's inquest opens into killings of three Quebec men chosen at random

A coroner's inquest opening in Montreal today will look into the deaths of three men seemingly killed at random over a 24-hour span last August.

A coroner's inquest opening in Montreal today will look into the deaths of three men seemingly killed at random over a 24-hour span last August.

Coroner Gehane Kamel will oversee the inquiry into the killings of Andre Lemieux, Mohamed Belhaj, Alex Levis-Crevier and the police-killing of the 26-year-old suspect, Abdulla Shaikh.

At the time of the slayings, provincial police said it appeared the suspect, who had a history of mental health problems, had chosen his victims at random and had acquired a firearm illegally.

Police allege Shaikh shot Lemieux, 64, and Belhaj, 48, one night in Montreal in August 2022 and killed 22-year-old Levis-Crevier in Laval, Que., about 24 hours later.

Quebec's mental health review board ruled in March 2022 that Shaikh, who was under the supervision of a mental health hospital, posed a "significant risk" to public safety but could continue living in the community. It also said that while he suffered from denial and trivialization of behavioural disorders, as well as violence and psychiatric pathology, he had shown improvement over the previous six months.

In the days following the spate of killings, chief coroner Pascale Descary ordered a public inquiry into the deaths.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2023.