Graphic footage from OPP officer’s bodycam plays central role at trial

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Body camera footage plays central role at trial

OPP officer’s body camera footage released

WARNING: This story contains disturbing video, descriptions of violence as it unfolded, the sound of gunshots and profanity.

Footage from Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Eric Mueller’s body-worn camera is a crucial piece of evidence at the trial of the man charged with his murder and the attempted murder of two other officers who were responding to a call for a disturbance and a possible gunshot in the early morning hours of May 11, 2023, in Bourget, Ont.

While the jury saw and heard the whole video, which includes the moment the officers are shot and the agonizing aftermath, that specific part is edited out of the footage provided by the court to media.

With a judge’s permission, media outlets routinely obtain copies of exhibits from the court that have been entered into evidence during a trial.

Just over eight minutes of footage was provided. CTV News Ottawa is publishing only certain portions of video and has removed some audio due to its distressing nature.

Alain Bellefeuille has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. While Bellefeuille admits to killing Mueller and injuring Const. Marc Lauzon and Const. François Gamache-Asselin, his lawyers say Bellefeuille never called, nor expected police to show up at his home in the middle of the night and he thought he was shooting at intruders. Bellefeuille, who lawyers say had been sleeping when officers arrived, is expected to testify in his own defence.

The Crown argues it was an ambush—the officers were shot within seconds of entering Bellefeuille’s home during a wellness check and Bellefeuille had been lying in wait. In his opening statement, assistant Crown attorney François Dulude told the jury it would hear from a firearms expert about Bellefeuille’s semi-automatic rifle and a night vision scope and muzzle attachment.

In addition to providing a look at what happened that tragic night, the video also shows what most never get to see—what police can sometimes face when responding to calls.

What prompted the police response

Court heard Bellefeuille’s neighbour called 911 in the middle of the night on May 11, 2023, to report hearing what she thought was a gunshot.

The woman’s husband testified that she thought Bellefeuille had shot himself and police were sent to do a wellness check on him.

Lauzon was the first officer on scene and also went to the neighbour’s house to speak with them. They provided Lauzon with Bellefeuille’s name and number but he didn’t answer when Lauzon called him.

Mueller arrives

Mueller’s body camera was activated at 2:28 a.m.

It captures his cruiser pulling into the driveway of Bellefeuille’s home on Laval Street.

Lauzon is in his cruiser with its emergency lights flashing in the driveway. He’d already been to the neighbour’s house.

You hear sirens as the officers get out of their cruisers. Lauzon turns off his flashing emergency lights but the bright white “takedown light” that’s part of the light bar on top of Lauzon’s cruiser along with the spotlight is turned on, illuminating the house.

Speaking in French, Lauzon tells Mueller that Bellefeuille lives alone and at some point the porch light that had been off came on.

He also told him about why the neighbour called 911 and that Bellefeuille was going to have to move out of his home.

Perimeter check

Lauzon and Mueller walk towards the house before walking around the perimeter, shining their flashlights into the windows and on the front porch right in front of them.

Speaking into his police radio, Mueller can be heard telling Gamache-Asselin to “come up.” He was the third officer on scene but would never make it into the house.

Checking the exterior of the property, Lauzon walks around the right side of the house by the garage and Mueller goes to the left.

You can see Mueller’s shadow on the house as he shines his flashlight on it.

“Cover the front door, just going to do a perimeter check first,” Mueller says in English over his radio. It’s 2:30 a.m.

As Mueller gets to the back of the house, a dog barks about three times and he shines his flashlight at the back door and windows.

Lauzon meets Mueller in the backyard and approaches the back door. He says it’s locked and that if Bellefeuille was sleeping, the dog’s barking would wake him up.

At 2:31 a.m. Lauzon is seen knocking loudly at the back door over and over again for about 30 seconds.

He says he sees a dog and then continues knocking on a window.

Mueller and Lauzon then walk back to the front of the house, Mueller shining his flashlight into a basement window.

“Allo Alain, police!”

It’s 2:33 a.m.

Lauzon is the first officer to enter the home through the unlocked front door, saying loudly “Allo Alain, police!” A dog barks again. This is the first time the officers verbally announced themselves as police.

In the full video shown in court, Lauzon continues to announce himself saying: “Salut le chien. Allo Alain, police! Alain!”

Mueller also yells “Hello!”

Shots fired

Right after Mueller said “Hello!” and mere seconds after the officers walked into the home, Bellefeuille fired several shots from his bedroom, which struck the officers.

About 46 seconds of the video, a section that includes the shooting, was removed from the exhibit.

The video provided by the court picks up again just before 2:34 a.m. Mueller is on the ground in the mudroom, bleeding—his body-worn camera is pointed up toward the ceiling and the door to the right.

Lauzon, who was shot several times, is seen coming back into frame in the doorway near Mueller. He bends over, breathing heavily and moaning with smoke from where bullets hit his protective vest visible.

“Retreat! Where is he?” Gamache-Asselin, who had taken cover behind vehicles in the driveway, can be heard yelling from outside at Lauzon, followed by “Marc, retreat!”

Gamache-Asselin screams on his radio for an ambulance.

At 2:34:18 Bellefeuille becomes visible on the camera coming out of his bedroom at the back of the house and he fires two more shots out the window. After that moment, the scene is very briefly quiet; the only sound is that of shell casings bouncing off the floor.

The defence has suggested Bellefeuille had been sleeping when the officers arrived.

Bellefeuille is wearing a baseball hat, black t-shirt and pants.

Bellefeuille fires once more before walking up to Mueller and leaning over him.

“Shoulda never broke into my house”

Bellefeuille looks directly at Mueller’s face and speaks to him.

“You f—ed with the wrong mother f-er man…should have never broke into my house. Sorry about that.”

You can hear Lauzon moaning outside. He’d collapsed on the lawn.

At 2:35 a.m. Bellefeuille turns on the light and grabs Mueller’s body-worn camera from his vest, covering it up.

After that the screen is dark but it’s still recording audio—there’s a lot of rustling and then four more gunshots in quick succession—believed to be when Bellefeuille fires at the OPP cruisers in the driveway.

Bellefeuille’s defence team says he thought he was firing on intruders and never set out to kill police.

Bellefeuille calls 911

At 2:37 a.m., nearly four minutes after shots were first fired, Bellefeuille called 911.

“I thought it was a break and enter and I, unfortunately, I shot a police,” he told the dispatcher. “I shot a police; unfortunately, he broke into my house.”

Other body camera footage

Court was also shown body camera footage from Gamache-Asselin and heard audio from the camera of now-Sgt. Ionut Mihuta who arrested Bellefeuille. Mihuta’s camera was mostly blocked due to additional body armour he put on while responding to the shooting.

The trial resumes next week.