Murder charges for two men in connection with Old Montreal fire

At least three people have been injured after a fire broke out in the Old Montreal area on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (Source: Julia Guo Mailhot)

Two young men are facing second-degree murder charges in connection with the fatal fire in Old Montreal that killed Léonor Geraudie, 43, and her daughter Vérane Reynaud-Geraudie on Oct. 4.

Justin Fortier-Trahan, 20, and Juventino Hernandez Pelaez, 18, are also facing arson and assault charges, as the fire also injured two people.

Montreal police (SPVM) said on Friday that they arrested the two men, alleging that Fortier-Trahan started the fire after throwing an incendiary object into the Loam wine bar on the building's main floor. The fire then spread to the upper floors where a hostel was being operated.

Hernandez Palaez drove the getaway vehicle, police allege.

Twenty-five people were inside the three-storey historic building, which was totally destroyed.  

The fire was the second deadly blaze in Old Montreal in less than two years, after seven people were killed in a March 2023 fire in a building that housed short-term rentals.

City records show that both buildings belong to Emile Benamor, who also owns a third building in the neighbourhood that was hit by gunfire earlier this week.

With files from The Canadian Press.