2 women killed, 1 injured after stabbing attack west of Montreal

Two women were killed and a third was seriously injured after a stabbing attack at an apartment building west of Montreal Thursday morning, Quebec provincial police say.

The suspect, a 44-year-old man, was arrested at the scene by police. A source told CTV News that one of the victims was his 68-year-old mother, while the other two women lived in the same apartment building. 

According to the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), two women, ages 68 and 53, were pronounced dead at the scene of the armed assault in Vaudreuil-Dorion, an off-island suburb of Montreal.  

Police are seen apprehending a suspect outside an apartment building in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., west of Montreal, where multiple people were stabbed, in a still frame taken from handout video footage, captured on a smartphone by a witness on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Piero Gervasi

The SQ said they were called to the highrise on Émile Bouchard Street just before noon and found three victims with serious stab wounds.

The third victim, a 70-year-old woman, was sent to a Montreal hospital in critical condition, according to a paramedic spokesperson.

Her life was considered out of danger by 6:45 p.m. Thursday. 

The SQ said the suspect was also sent to hospital with minor injuries and will be questioned later in the day by investigators as the investigation continues.

According to a witness, the suspect lived in the building where the attack took place and appeared to be in a state of crisis.

"We often saw him with his dog outside. He looked normal, but nobody talked to him. People didn't dare talk to him because they didn't know how he'd react sometimes," Bernard Villeneuve told CTV News. He said he saw the man being put in handcuffs during the arrest.

Another witness, Jesse Dansereau, said he was coming back from grocery shopping when he saw police officers rush into the building. He said he saw two victims being carried out on stretchers as the scene unfolded.

Paramedics and firefighters respond to an armed assault at an apartment building on Émile Bouchard Street in Vaudreuil-Dorion on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024. (Olivia O'Malley/CTV News)

Quebec' public safety minister François Bonnardel reacted to the tragedy on social media on Thursday, calling it a "disturbing situation."

"My thoughts go out first to the victims, their families and also to the citizens nearby. The police are already on the ground and conducting their investigation to shed light on this case," he wrote in a post on X.

The mayor of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Guy Pilon, also expressed his sympathies.

"Sad events occurred today in a building on rue Émile-Bouchard. My thoughts are with the families and loved ones of the victims of this tragedy, but also with the citizens who live in this building," he wrote on X.