Meriem Boundaoui’s killer should also get four life sentences for attempted murders, prosecutor argues
One of the prosecutors in the case in which Salim Touaibi was recently convicted of murdering a 15-year-old girl in St-Léonard five years ago argued the killer should also serve four life sentences for the attempted murders for which he was also convicted.
During a sentencing hearing at the Montreal courthouse on Thursday, prosecutor Simon Lapierre told Superior Court Justice Yvan Poulin that Touaibi, 30, clearly intended to kill someone on Feb. 7, 2021 when he fired off eight shots toward a Volkswagen Jetta.
Meriem Boundaoui was seated inside the Jetta and was killed. As the Crown told a jury at the start of the trial, the girl had nothing to do with the conflict that motivated Touaibi to discharge his firearm.
Besides being found guilty of first-degree murder last week, Touaibi was also found guilty on four counts of attempted murder.
A conviction for first-degree murder comes with an automatic life sentence with no chance at full parole until an offender has served 25 years.
On Thursday, Lapierre argued Touaibi should also serve four concurrent life sentences for the attempted murders.
The prosecutor noted that Touaibi was reckless and that by shooting Meriem, he clearly targeted the wrong person in the conflict he was involved in.
Touaibi also fired off as many bullets as he could, the prosecutor said.
The conflict was over parking spaces used by the clients of a hair salon owned by the Rekik family on Jean-Talon St. that were on the property of a nearby grocery store owned by the Bensalem family.
Touaibi was on the Bensalem family’s side of the conflict. However, Lapierre said on Thursday, the gunman was told just before the shots were fired that the conflict was resolved.
There was also evidence that a member of the Bensalem family sent a message to Touaibi telling him to “Do nothing. Do nothing” just before the shooting.
Touaibi testified during the trial and admitted he fired all eight of the shots, including a few that struck the driver side door and window of the Jetta.
The girl was seated in the front passenger seat.
Touaibi also said he did not know anyone was inside the vehicle and that he was trying to act as a peacemaker in the conflict.
Touaibi’s longtime friend, Aymane Bouadi, 30, was acquitted on all five of the same charges last week.
Defence lawyer Marc Labelle began his arguments by saying the shooting did not involve “one gang versus another gang.”
“Here in this case you have an accused who said, ‘It was me. I was the killer’,” Labelle said, arguing his client showed remorse for the victim when he testified.
Poulin gave Touaibi a chance to say something before he decides on the sentence later this month.
“I want to reiterate my apologies,” Touaibi said. “I think daily of the victim’s family. I never wanted to cause harm that day. That is the truth of things.”
This report will be updated.
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