Torture, arson, shootings: Quebec police announce major operation against organized crime

A man with links to organized crime who was reported missing from Quebec's Saguenay region was found alive but mutilated in Montreal in what appears to be part of a rise in violence in the provincial capital between drug traffickers and the Hells Angels.

The 28-year-old man was found Thursday at around 2 a.m. in Rosemont with a missing toe and a missing finger, a source confirmed to CTV News.

The man, who is known to police and has links to the outlaw biker gang, was also allegedly beaten and whipped, and found covered in bruises. He sought help from a passerby, who brought him to hospital.

Quebec provincial police had issued a missing person report on Wednesday, saying in a news release that they had feared for his safety.

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) believe he was kidnapped and tortured before being released in Montreal, and that the case is linked to an ongoing war between drug traffickers and the outlaw biker group.

At a press conference Friday, the SQ announced it is teaming up with other police forces, including Montreal police, to crack down on an escalating turf war following a rash of violence in the Quebec City area, including kidnappings, arsons, shootings, and other violent crimes.

The Surete du Quebec's Benoit Richard speaks to the media on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, about a major police operation targeting organized crime. (Source: Noovo Info)

Police said they arrested on Friday two men aged 22 and 38, and a 37-year-old woman in connection with events that took place in Saint-Malachie, a small village south of Quebec City. According to Noovo Info, two men with ties to the Hells Angels were allegedly kidnapped and tortured in a home by men linked to Dave Turmel, an organized crime boss who has fled to Europe.

One of the men who was kidnapped killed one of his captors after hours of being tortured and managed to escape. The conflict is linked to drug trafficking.

About 100 officers from various units of the SQ were deployed Friday to quell the violence and more arrests are expected in the coming days.

In recent days, videos have circulated online showing tortured individuals. "These events obviously affect people who are very targeted, who are directly linked to organized crime or to people involved in the sale of narcotics," Lt. Benoit Richard, an SQ spokesperson, told reporters.

The SQ is collaborating with local police services in Quebec, Lévis, and Saguenay in their investigation. 

"The message is clear, we are going to attack all these people who commit these crimes and we are going to bring them before the courts," Richard said. "We will not stop until we have put an end to the violent events we are currently seeing."

Quebec Public Safety Minister François Bonnardel said in a statement on Friday that Friday's operation sends "a clear message to criminals that we are sparing no effort to ensure public safety."

With files from Noovo Info