Martin C. Barry, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A former day camp councillor has been sentenced in Laval to two years of home confinement for deceiving a teenager and sexually assaulting two young men while they were intoxicated.
Alexis Plourde-Dinelle had become friends with his victims in their early teens.
The 33-year-old Montrealer pleaded guilty on May 12 at the Laval courthouse to two counts of sexual assault and one of luring.
He worked with young people for years. He was a day camp counselor in Mauricie, and worked at a Maison des jeunes in Quebec’s Estrie region.
At the end of his home confinement sentence, Plourde-Dinelle will be placed on probation for three years, including two years with supervision.
Man accused of father’s premeditated murder in Laval
A young man has been charged with the premeditated murder of his 71-year-old father in Laval, marking the city’s first homicide of the year.
Facing a charge of first-degree murder, 26-year-old Thomas Erik Eyelom appeared in court last week.
First-degree murder carries a mandatory life sentence with no eligibility for parole for 25 years upon conviction.
According to the Laval Police, the body of the 71-year-old was discovered at his residence on Dumouchel Street in Chomedey by a family member.
The LPD initially treated it as a “suspicious death.” The LPD’s Crimes Against Persons Unit took charge of the case to try to clarify the cause and circumstances of death.
A scene analysis, conducted in collaboration with the LPD’s forensic identification squad and the forensic sciences and legal medicine laboratory, as well as information gathered by the LPD’s crimes against persons squad, allowed investigators to determine that the case was murder, said a spokesperson for the LPD.
Family of three homeless after electrical fire in Duvernay
A family of three from Duvernay is temporarily homeless after a fire believed to be caused by a freak electrical accident seriously damaged their home on du Genévrier St. around noon on May 12.
Laval Fire Dept. investigators suspect that high winds around half past noon that day may have damaged aluminum cladding on the house, bringing it into contact with an electrical power line.
Current from the line may have flowed into metal rain gutters outside the house, spreading in and setting off a fire, according to the LFD.
Damage was estimated at $100,000, with an additional $40,000 in damages to interior furnishings.
Driver in deadly 2019 Laval autoroute truck crash gets 10-year sentence
The truck driver found responsible for the August 2019 fiery multi-vehicle pile-up on Autoroute 440 near the A-15 in Laval which killed four people has been sentenced to a decade in prison.
On Aug. 5, 2019, Jagmeet Grewal was driving a transport truck and a 53-foot trailer without a valid license, when he crashed into stopped traffic as he was travelling around 100 km/h, causing a major fire, while trapping some occupants in their cars.
The crash killed Robert Tanguay-Plante, Sylvain Pouliot, Michèle Bernier and Gilles Marsolais, while injuring 15 others.
Surveillance camera images used in a subsequent investigation showed him not holding the steering wheel leading up to the crash.
Grewal’s license was also suspended at the time of the crash, and he was convicted three times for impaired driving in the 1990s
“Innocent victims that were at the wrong place at the wrong time perished and others were severely injured and are still carrying their pain and sufferings,” Superior Court Justice Yanick Laramée wrote in a ruling prior to imposing the sentence.
Laval mall subject of anti-theft operation
MATTHEW DALDALIAN Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Carrefour Laval was at the center of a significant national anti-shoplifting operation last week, as law enforcement and retail security teams joined forces to combat rising retail theft across Canada.
The two-day initiative, conducted on May 15 and 16, was part of a broader campaign led by the Retail Council of Canada (RCC), in collaboration with the Service de police de Laval (SPL) and CF Carrefour Laval. Similar “Blitz” operations were carried out in shopping centers nationwide between May 2 and 19.
Retail theft has become a pressing issue, with Canadian businesses reporting losses exceeding $9 billion in 2024. “Retailers can’t tackle this growing issue alone. It requires both staffing and effective tools,” said Michel Rochette, president of the RCC’s Quebec division.
“Retailers are hit twice: they suffer direct financial losses and risk losing their customers’ trust—not to mention the security concerns for everyone in the store. Retail crime needs to become a true public priority.”
During the operation, Laval police officers were deployed during peak hours to monitor and intervene directly with offenders, working alongside mall security to increase visibility and deter repeat offenses. “Store security is one of our key priorities,” said SPL spokesperson Sgt. Laurent Arsenault.
“Operations like this allow us to act quickly with offenders, reassure the public, and reaffirm our commitment to Laval’s business community. We’re proud to take part in this initiative, which serves as a model for collaboration.”
The SPL’s Azimut unit—a specialized squad trained to intervene in commercial areas— was involved in a similar blitz at Carrefour Laval in December 2024, during which several arrests were made. The RCC emphasized that the campaign isn’t just about enforcement. The initiative also aims to raise public awareness about the real cost of shoplifting.
“Blitz” operations are designed to deliver concentrated results within a short time frame by deploying officers and security staff during strategic hours to focus on high-risk periods and known offenders. Carrefour Laval was selected due to its status as a major commercial hub in Quebec and its history of cooperation with authorities.
The RCC described the center as a “nerve center of retail activity.” The recent operation also comes weeks after an armed robbery at a jewelry store inside Carrefour Laval on March 31. While no injuries were reported and the suspect remains at large, the incident reflects the broader security challenges facing one of Quebec’s busiest malls. A vehicle from the SPL’s Azimut unit, parked outside Carrefour Laval during the two-day anti-theft operation on May 16.
