Man, woman charged in extortion cases targeting Montreal restaurants

An SPVM police officer gets out of his patrol car in Montreal, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

A man and woman are facing multiple charges in connection with cases of extortion and gunfire targeting Montreal restaurants over the summer months.

Taevon Nesfield, 30, and Avianna Thompson, 20, were arrested Thursday by the Montreal police's anti-gun squad, EMAF, after officers conducted searches at several homes.

Court records show that Nesfield, a Dorval resident, was charged with extortion after allegedly threatening the owner of the Maü restaurant on de la Montagne Street "to pay a sum of money" on July 5.

Police also allege he went into the restaurant on Sept. 12 at around 9:20 p.m. and used a hammer to damage the business while patrons were inside and assaulted "the staff and clients." The damaged property exceeds $5,000 in value, according to court documents.

His co-accused, Thompson, is a resident of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. She is facing a charge of discharging a firearm at the Sushi Hidden Fish restaurant also on de la Montagne between Aug. 25 and 26.

Teens arrested this week after Verdun bar targeted

The man and woman are among five people arrested in recent weeks in a Montreal police investigation into a series of extortion and arson cases involving restaurants.

A 14-year-old boy was arrested for an attempted arson attack on the Bar Social on Wellington Street in Verdun on July 12. He was released with conditions on a promise to appear in youth court.

Two other teens, both 14 years old, were also arrested in connection with the case and appeared in court in September to face charges of attempted arson, possession of incendiary material, conspiracy, disguise for a criminal purpose and mischief.

Police say the investigation is ongoing because the same Verdun bar was targeted in June 2024.

There has been a recent wave of young people arrested for arson and gunfire targeting Montreal merchants.

Earlier this month, Montreal police chief Fady Dagher issued a plea to local businesses — who are being extorted by young people who are enlisted by criminal groups to carry out their deeds — to call police sooner rather than later.

The head of the police's organized crime unit, Cmdr. Francis Renaud, said they've had between 30 and 40 cases of extortion reported to them this summer, mainly in the downtown area.