Investigators with the General Crimes of the West Region of the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) have arrested a man suspected of stabbing at least three people in Montreal in recent months. Suspect Benjamin Webster allegedly attacked his victims indiscriminately.
Posted at 11:26 am
Mayssa Ferah La Press
The 20-year-old man was arrested Thursday morning at the family’s home in LaSalle County and appeared at the Montreal Courthouse on Friday morning. At the moment he only faces one charge, which is attempting to stab a man in Montreal on June 4th.
” [Les policiers] speak of three victims, but the denunciation relates to only one. That’s all ? asked Webster’s attorney, Me Léonard Waxman, the intern representing the prosecutor’s office.
“Yes, that’s all for now,” he replied.
Mr. Waxman then warned his client that he could face further charges, implying that the investigation is continuing.
mental health problems?
The defense attorney also requested that his client be seen and psychologically evaluated by the courthouse’s Psychosocial Emergency (UPS) professionals.
The UPS produces preliminary reports that can precede, for example, a more in-depth assessment at the Philippe-Pinel National Institute of Forensic Psychiatry.
If it turns out that psychological problems are at the background, such a case with multiple victims would be the second in just a few weeks in Montreal. Another man, Abdulla Shaikh, was shot dead by police 10 days ago after shooting and killing three people in less than 48 hours.
Intense investigation
The SPVM had deployed a mobile command post on June 10 and released a composite portrait of the suspect to obtain information about two of the attacks Webster is likely suspected of.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Police conducted a search of the suspect’s home in LaSalle on Thursday.
The SPVM then stated that the attacks on May 31 and June 4 took place in the LaSalle sector.
The first victim came out of a training center and waited for the bus around 1:15 a.m. on Bishop-Power Boulevard near George Street. A gunman approached the young man and stabbed him in the torso before fleeing behind Place LaSalle. to the west.
The second attack took place around 9:30 p.m. on the same day. The victim was walking on Rue Raymond near Paul Séguin Park “when she felt someone run behind her and then hit her hard on the neck” before fleeing through the park. Footage from nearby surveillance cameras shows the suspect followed the victim for about 300 meters.
Webster entered the appearance room of the SPVM’s Southern Division Operations Center in a white hoodie. The police asked him to remove his hood for the performance. He carefully listened to his lawyer, who specifically told him that he would tell his parents what happened during the performance.
As a matter of form, his dismissal hearing has been scheduled for next Tuesday.