WARNING: This story contains details of a violent crime.
The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) says it wanted to send a “clear message” to organized crime groups linked to a deadly turf war playing out across the province by conducting a series of raids in several regions.
On Wednesday, the SQ said it arrested 35 people in 15 different raids spread throughout the regions including Quebec City, the Côte-Nord, the Saguenay and Outaouais.
Police say criminals of “all allegiances” were targeted in the sweep, particularly “level 1 and level 2” suspects — people who operate on a local and regional level. The raids fell short of nabbing the leaders of the crime groups.
The arrests are connected to about 30 criminal cases for crimes related to drug trafficking, kidnapping and torture, according to the SQ.
One of those cases unfolded in Saint-Malachie, a municipality in the Chaudières-Appalaches region.
According to Radio-Canada, four people kidnapped and brutally tortured a rival, cutting off their ears, burning them with a torch and plunging their head below water to simulate a drowning. All four, are all suspected of having ties to the Blood Family Mafia — a group believed to be waging war with the Hell’s Angels.
One of those men involved in the kidnapping was recently sentenced to five years in prison.
One of the homes raided on Wednesday is in Portneuf, a municipality located about half way between Quebec City and Trois-Rivières. (Nicolas Perron-Drolet/Radio-Canada)
“Today, we’re sending a clear message: the SQ will spare no efforts in the fight against perpetrators of violence and drug traffickers,” said Michel Patenaude, the provincial police service’s chief inspector of its criminal investigations unit.
Dave “Pik” Turmel, the alleged leader of the Blood Family Mafia, and All Boivin, who’s believed to be leading a crime group in the Saguenay region, recently topped the list of the most wanted men in Canada.
The raids, which involved about 200 police officers, were conducted with the help of Quebec City police, Saguenay police and Quebec correctional services.
Drugs were seized and correctional officers in six provincial detention centres helped police seize cell phones.