MONTREAL - A Montreal man accused of kidnapping, sexually assaulting, and murdering a 37 year-old woman in Laval a year ago was in court Monday for a preliminary hearing to determine whether there's enough evidence to bring him to trial.
Convicted sex offender Claude Larouche was at the Montreal courthouse to face the hearing related to the assault and death of Natasha Cournoyer, a federal corrections worker who disappeared last Oct. 1 as she left her office in Laval.
Cournoyer's body was found a month later in Pointe-aux-Trembles.
Police arrested Larouche, 48, in early November. He was charged with kidnapping and first-degree murder.
Cournoyer's case will rely heavily on DNA evidence
"I'm not going to say it's an open-and-shut case because we never know, but it's technical evidence so for us - it's not witnesses who can forget things - it's biology, most of the proof," said prosecutor Elianne Perreault.
A publication ban is in effect to protect the evidence should the case be heard in front of a jury, though police last year revealed that Larouche was arrested because of DNA evidence linking Larouche to the crime.
"A DNA expert will testify this week, and it's the main point, because we don't have any direct witness of this crime, this murder," said defence lawyer Richard Rougeon.
None of Cournoyer's relatives are expected to attend the hearing due to the sensitive nature of the case, said the prosecution.
"Even a year later, grief is pretty strong. It's pretty tough for the mother to follow this," said Perreault.
A total of 17 witnesses will be heard over the next two weeks to determine if the case is strong enough for Larouche to stand trial.
If so, the trial wouldn't begin for at least a year.
Larouche was also charged in May in connection with the attempted murder of a sex worker.
