Meriem Boundaoui, 15, was 'innocent victim' in feud over parking spots, Crown alleges

Meriem Boundaoui died in hospital after being shot in a drive-by attack in Montreal's Saint-Leonard borough on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021. She was 15 years old. (Source: Facebook/Bonjour L'Algérie)

A newly unsealed court document alleges that Meriem Boundaoui, the 15-year-old fatally shot in Montreal two years ago, was an "innocent victim" in a dispute about parking spots.

Superior Court Justice Éric Down agreed to lift a publication ban on a motion that laid out the Crown prosecutor's theory into the Feb. 7, 2021 killing of the teen girl, who died from a bullet to the head. The teen's death shocked Quebec and prompted calls to address gun crime in Montreal. 

The publication ban was lifted after a request by media outlets, including La Presse and QMI.

According to the document, the shooting was a culmination of months-long disputes between the owners of a barber shop and a grocery store on Jean-Talon Street in Montreal's Saint-Leonard borough. The grocery store owner had complained that clients of the nearby barbershop were using his parking spaces.

The Crown's theory has not yet been tested in court.

The disputes between the two families included threats, including a phone call from someone who told the salon owner's family that he would "put one in his head" and "smash" his car.

According to the Crown, some of the calls allegedly came from Salim Touaibi, one of the co-accused in the teen's killing.

On the day of her death, a meeting was held between members of the feuding families to settle the dispute behind the grocery store.

At around 6:03 p.m., a Mercedes C300 pulled up next to a Volkswagen Jetta. The Mercedes driver asked if the man inside the Jetta was from the barbershop and was told it was. That's when five gunshots were fired into the Jetta, fatally striking Boundaoui, who was a passenger, and another man who survived.

The Mercedes fled the scene heading north before it was located five days later at Parc Île Haynes, in the city's east end.

According to the Crown, a ballistics analysis confirmed the bullet casings found in the vehicle matched the ones found at the scene of the shooting.

"The vehicle also repeatedly drove near ... Touaibi's home" in the weeks leading up to the shooting, according to the document.

On June 26, 2022, Salim Touaibi, 27, was the first person to be arrested in the teen's killing. He was charged with first-degree murder and four counts of attempted murder. 

Aymane Bouadi, 27, was arrested days later and is facing the same charges of first-degree murder and four counts of attempted murder. Last month, a judge denied Bouadi's request to be released from jail until his trial. Crown prosecutor Simon Lapierre said the judge was not convinced that the accused's detention was not justified and that the violent firearm-related attack has shocked the community.

The case is expected to return to court in March.