An arrest warrant was issued for his arrest on November 23 after he failed to appear in court in connection with a case in which he is accused of drugging two people without their knowledge. The alleged acts were allegedly committed in August 2013 and June 2016.
“The court was not reassured by the guarantees offered by the defense to ensure the defendant’s presence in court at the next dates,” commented the prosecutor for criminal and criminal proceedings, Me Laurence-Fanny L’Estage.
During Tuesday’s hearing at the Montreal courthouse, Detective Sergeant Alexandre Renaud testified about the details of his arrests, the first of which took place on November 11, 2022.
According to Detective Sergeant Renaud, investigators attempted to contact him in various ways, including by telephone, but the person did not respond. Eventually they went to his house and, despite several calls and warnings, had to break down the door with a battering ram. Mr. Munteanu was “hiding” under a blanket at the time, Mr. Renaud explained on Tuesday.
Since then, investigators have taken several steps to find Mr. Munteanu, the SPVM told Noovo Info. However, he no longer lived at the address where the first arrest took place.
Finally, on November 30th, it was a citizen who called 911 and reported that the person wanted by the police was in an apartment in Laval. Authorities went to the scene and arrested him around 7:15 p.m.
“The person was cooperative,” the SPVM spokesperson told Noovo Info.
Mr Munteanu has been behind bars ever since. He blamed his lawyers for missing that court appearance. He particularly criticized the fact that they had not informed him about the agenda.
Last Friday, his request for release pending Tuesday’s hearing was finally rejected.
The defendant also presented his account of the facts at the hearing on Tuesday.
“The judge said that the defendant made contradictory comments and that at times he even became slightly chatty. In short, his version was contradictory,” Me L’Estage reported to Noovo Info.
Mr Munteanu will return to court on December 7th.
In addition, the opera singer was charged with two counts of vehicle theft in the US state of Tennessee. He had pleaded guilty to the offense of taking a vehicle without permission. He was therefore in default on an arrest warrant in the United States.
The former Star Académie participant was also charged with shoplifting for a story that occurred on January 6, 2018 at a Canadian Tire in Laval. However, the charges were dropped the following year.
With information from Marie-Pier Boucher for Noovo Info