Citizens of the Chomedey district in Laval are particularly concerned as two houses have been the target of gunfire in recent days.
• Also read: Laval: After knowing the wrong address, they shoot at the house next door
• Also read: Laval residence riddled with bullets: “You risk killing innocent children”
Criminals shot at a residential building on Boulevard de Normandie on Monday morning, less than a week after the house next door suffered the same fate.
On Wednesday, a man who lived in the house next to the second target home expressed his concerns in an interview with TVA Nouvelles.
“The two windows closest to this house are children ages 10 and 13 who are there,” he said.
The latter claims to have installed surveillance cameras for fear of a repeat of such events.
“We have trouble sleeping. My children don't stay at home anymore. They are not at home. We have to manage the risk ourselves!” the man announces.
He also says he is disappointed with the police response since the events.
“As citizens we face clear and immediate risk. Then we have the right to protection. I expect more action from the police,” he emphasizes.
For its part, the Laval City Police Service (SPL) is trying to reassure its citizens. On Wednesday, the SPL also released new data showing a decline in gun violence in 2023.
“In two years we have confiscated more than 110 firearms: this is unprecedented in our country. “We have made more than 70 arrests in two years: this is a big deal,” Jean-François Rousselle, deputy director of the criminal investigation department of the Laval police, told TVA Nouvelles.
The number of shootings and gunshot wounds has fallen significantly over the past two years.
From 2021 to 2023, the number of firearms discharges in Laval fell from 43 to 13.
While 16 people were injured by a firearm in 2021, only four people suffered the same fate last year.
According to the SPL, it is mainly street gangs who shoot at houses or vehicles to “spread news”.
No arrests have been made at the two homes in Chomedey district that were targeted in recent days.
To see the full report, watch the video above.