A South Shore man charged with first-degree murder in connection with a stabbing at a house party earlier this year has been denied bail. Vincent Dilaj, 22, appeared at the Longueuil courthouse on Friday after being charged last March in the death of 24-year-old Julien Houle in Boucherville. Houle was stabbed to death early in the morning of March 20. Dilaj had requested to be released from jail while he waits for this trial to start. Several members of the victim’s family were in court Friday as the judge went through the details of what occurred the day Houle died before rendering his decision. The hour-and-a-half hearing was extremely emotional for Houle’s family, including his mother, who brought a picture of her son with her. The accused was present for his bail hearing, and several times the victim’s family looked over at him as the judge was reading his decision. The evidence heard at the bail hearing is protected by a routine publication ban. Friday’s decision means the accused will stay behind bars pending the start of the trial, which has not yet been scheduled.
