The former leader of a far-right group, who was found guilty by the Court of Appeal after taking over a media outlet to wreak havoc, is now asking for absolution to avoid any unpleasantness related to his crime.
• Also read: Chaos in Vice Quebec: Atalante boss acquitted
“He is not a heavily criminalized person, a criminal history of burglary and intrusion would hurt him. [L’absolution]It would not harm him and his family,” pleaded Me Mathieu Corbo of the defense Friday at the Montreal courthouse.
Raphaël Lévesque tried to put the odds on his side, saying he was willing to pay Reporters Without Borders $1,000 in return to avoid a criminal record.
The 39-year-old would even be willing to do a few dozen hours of community service, as long as it’s not too many, as he says he’s busy with his job as a truck driver.
According to his attorney, Lévesque committed only a “technical offense” when he invaded VICE Quebec’s offices in May 2018.
The group used a ruse to open the door and then caused chaos by, among other things, throwing papers they had brought with them.
All this to give a journalist a “Trash Media Award 2018” in connection with his coverage of extremist groups.
“I had no intention of intimidating him, I got a little carried away at the moment, but it was done in good spirits,” Lévesque testified on Friday. It’s the equivalent of vegans walking into a restaurant, which is the goal of grassroots activism. »
Lévesque is still a member of Atalante but no longer their leader, the court was told.
Acquitted for the first time in 2020 by Judge Joëlle Roy, he was found guilty of burglary and trespassing by the Court of Appeal, which remanded the case to the judge for a sentence against him.
And for the Crown, Lévesque should get a conviction, even if it slowed the process of clearing his criminal record for a previous drug trafficking case.
Me Geneviève Boutet therefore proposed a suspended sentence accompanied by two years of probation and 150 hours of community service.
Judge Roy will make her decision next month.
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