Quebec father charged with first-degree murder in deaths of two of his children
Two of the children of a Quebec father charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of two of his children have been found dead in a motel, triggering questions about the man’s criminal past and leaving his wife and three children as the main suspects.
Monsieur Gaétan, 50, and his wife, Catherine, 44, are expected to face charges after two bodies were found Monday in a motel room in Saguenay, nearly 300 kilometres (190 miles) north of Montreal. Two people, including a police officer, have been arrested in connection with the deaths.
The father and wife are known to police for a series of domestic and violent incidents. It’s not clear the charges against Monsieur Gaétan will be dropped.
Monsieur Gaétan’s attorney, Alexandre Leduc, said his client was in a good mood following his arrest.
“It’s a very bad thing that something like this has happened in my client’s life, but it’s better than what’s been happening in his life for the last 10 days,” said Mr. Leduc, who also represents the victims of Quebec’s 2007 shooting massacre at the Montreal Canadiens’ arena.
In a news conference Monday, Cmdr. Ian Lafrenière, the Quebec state attorney general, said a police officer found one of the bodies in the motel room and a second victim in the parking lot. Both victims were male, he said.
Mr. Lafrenière described his children as “the heart and soul” of the family, who had been trying to rebuild their lives.
Mr. Lafrenière said the Montreal Canadiens player known as Patrick Roy died of a drug overdose in the summer of 2011, 10 days after they played in a playoff loss. He says another man from his family died a few weeks later.
Monsieur Gaétan and his family, who were visiting for the holidays in Quebec, told CTV News they had just returned to their Quebec home Monday and their children had been asleep