Bystander shot, killed by police was hospital employee

MONTREAL - The innocent bystander shot and killed by Montreal police was identified Wednesday as 36-year-old Patrick Limoges.

Limoges was on St-Denis St. on Tuesday morning on his way to work at St.Luc Hospital - where he is a Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) technician - when police confronted Mario Hamel, 40, who had been slicing garbage bags on nearby Ste-Catherine St.

Police said that Hamel had lunged at officers with a knife, but have offered no explanation for how Limoges was shot.

The Sureté du Québec is investigating the matter.

Witnesses who talked to CTV News said they heard two gunshots early Tuesday morning, then looked up St-Denis St. to see the victims lying on opposite sides of the street.

Both victims were rushed to hospital, where Hamel's death was confirmed before noon, and police confirmed just after 6 p.m. that Limoges had died as well.

Hamel was homeless and had spent the night at the nearby Maison Eugénie Bernier. 

Limoges was originally from Trois-Rivières and was living in Montreal North.

With files from The Canadian Press

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  The incident began at Ste. Catherine and Ste. Elisabeth, where one man was throwing garbage into the street. (June 7, 2011)