Dany Villanueva kicked off his legal fight to stay in Canada Tuesday morning at a hearing at the Refugee and Immigration Board.
Villanueva is a landed immigrant who was ordered deported to his native Honduras after committing a series of crimes, starting with armed robbery in 2006.
In 2008 his younger brother Fredy was killed in a park while struggling against Montreal police.
One of seven witnesses expected to take the stand included a police investigator, who testified Tuesday that Villanueva was an inveterate member of criminal street gangs.
Several members of Villanueva's family are expected to testify before the tribunal. They hope to influence a positive outcome with an 800-name petition and a letter from Papineau Liberal incumbent MP Justin Trudeau.
If the tribunal decides Villanueva must leave, he can apply to federal court for judicial revision.
If that fails, he can then file another appeal on humanitarian grounds. He might, for example, claim that his life would be in danger if was forced to return to Honduras.
