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A suspect armed with a long gun opened fire on Monday at a Montreal hotel, killing a police officer before officers returned fire, killing him, police said. A civilian also died but it wasn’t immediately clear who fired that shot.
The police chief, Fady Dagher, said a second officer was seriously injured in the shooting in the city’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood but is in stable condition.
Dagher said it was the first time in 24 years that a Montreal police officer had been killed in the line of duty. “It’s a very, very sad day. It’s a nightmare,” he told reporters. Such shooting incidents in Montreal are rare.
Dagher said someone called emergency services about 11:35am about a person who was sticking a gun out of a window at the Hilton hotel.
Police arrived at the scene and were targeted with gunfire, he said. Video footage showed the shooter was also outside the hotel.
The shooting occurred in a partly Jewish neighbourhood that includes kosher markets and restaurants, but police declined to comment on a possible motive.
Dagher said he didn’t know who shot the civilian.
Police identified the deceased officer as constable Mohamed Lamine Benredouan, 34. He had been with the force since 2021.
Videos posted on social media appear to show the exchange of gunfire between police and a person carrying a long gun who was wearing an olive-coloured jacket and cargo pants.
The videos appear to show a civilian and at least one officer getting shot, while the person in the olive-coloured clothing appeared to get shot while adjusting or reloading their weapon.
The Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, said he was “horrified” by the violence.
Jacob Coutu, who was working in construction near the shooting, said he heard “four of five gunshots” on Monday morning. A few minutes later, he said police officers started arriving at the scene in large numbers, and he heard more gunfire.
“We saw cops getting in a gunfight, getting shot down,” Coutu said.
He estimates he heard 30 or 40 gunshots.
Frank Vogas told Agence France-Presse he was buying paint at a shop in the area when the gunfire erupted.
“I see the police storm in, come in from everywhere, and, they raise their guns,” the 71-year-old said, explaining that officers told people in the shop to keep low to the floor.
Cote-des-Neiges resident Danny Wilk told AFP that he witnessed the violence unfold.
“I was on the street near my home when I heard one shot, then several more,” he said, adding: “I tried to take shelter in the nearby pizzeria, and that’s when I saw the shooter, who looked ready to fire his weapon, dressed in military clothing.”
Wilk said he saw the officer, dead on the ground, before the shooter was taken down by police.
A police spokesperson in British Columbia said forces across the province were told of the possibility of “documentation or some type of manifesto” calling for police to be targeted with violence.
Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton with the Surrey police service said the warning was issued by an intelligence unit operating out of the RCMP British Columbia headquarters on Monday afternoon, after the “tragic events” in Montreal.
The Quebec domestic security minister, Ian Lafrenière, said he would refrain from commenting on details about the suspect’s identity and motives since the matter is now under investigation by an independent police watchdog.
But he confirmed multiple agencies were consulted, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), before investigators concluded that the shooting was not a terrorist attack.
Quebec premier Christine Frechette said she was “deeply shaken by the tragic events,” while urging people to “avoid speculation,” about what transpired.
The area had initially been locked down but officers were leaving the scene on Monday afternoon, and traffic was starting to resume.
With Associated Press and Agence France-Presse
