Shooting that killed 1, injured 2 at Montreal-area Starbucks linked to organized crime: minister

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1 dead, 2 injured at shooting in Starbucks in Laval, Que.

Shooting at a Starbucks in Laval

Laval police update on shooting at Starbucks

Multiple people injured in shooting at Laval Starbucks

A deadly shooting in broad daylight at a Starbucks in Laval, Que., on Wednesday appears to be linked to organized crime, says the province’s public security minister.

A police spokesperson confirmed to CTV News that one of the three people who were injured in the shooting, a man in his 40s, has died. His identity has not yet been officially released.

Police are not confirming multiple reports that a man named Charalambos Theologou, also nicknamed “Bobby the Greek,” is the victim.

“I can’t talk about the investigation. It has been transferred to the Sûreté du Québec. I knew this individual by reputation; he is connected to organized crime,” said SPL chief Pierre Brochet at a press conference.

The two other people injured did not suffer life-threatening injuries.

Provincial police say the shooting happened at the Starbucks near the intersection of Highway 440 and 100e Avenue in Laval at around 10:30 a.m.

No arrests have been made.

Public Security Minister Ian Lafrenière said in a post on his X account that “all indications” point to the shooting being targeted and linked to organized crime, adding that no innocent people were injured.

“This is very concerning. I am monitoring the situation closely with my colleagues, as a major police operation is underway,” he wrote on the post.

The shop is located on the side of the highway in a busy commercial area next to several other businesses.

At the press conference, Laval Mayor Stéphane Boyer said he is concerned about how brazen the shooting was and expressed sympathies with those were affected by it.

“It’s unacceptable what we saw today, to have such violence in a public space in front of families, in front of people. Obviously, we don’t want this in our city,” said Boyer, who noted that Laval has seen some success in fighting crime, pointing to lower incidents homicides and firearm discharges in recent years.

“The city is safer today than it was a few years ago but obviously it’s not enough and we won’t stop there,” he added.

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) has taken over the investigation, which is still ongoing, and working closely with Laval police.

“We can’t accept those kinds of events. There’s a big impact on the safety feeling for citizens,” said the Laval police chief.

Brochet said that the force will be adding more visibility on the street and focusing efforts on organized crime targets to make sure they understand “we’re going to be there, we’re going to follow them.”

Police released very little details about the investigation as it is in its early stages.

Pietro Poletti, a former Montreal police detective, said the shooting is another example of the consequences of the power vacuum left by the fall of the Italian Mafia’s dominance over organized crime in the city.

“It’s all clans today. There’s not one leader,” he said, pointing to groups like Arab Power and the Blood Family Mafia.

“They’re just street gangs that have access to weapons and very little repercussions from the law. But this individual that was shot in Laval today was very well known to the police in the realm of organized crime,” Poletti said in an interview.

He said it’s an “open market” in Montreal for different groups that are clashing with each other.

“We have a serious problem on our hands and I think it’s time that elected officials and local politicians step up to the plate because this is not the last, it’s only going to get worse.”

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the SQ at 1-800-659-4264.

With files from CTV News Montreal’s Rob Lurie