Police say three people are dead – a police officer, civilian, and the lone suspect – in a shooting in Montreal on Monday morning that triggered an active shooter alert and shelter-in-place order.
“It’s one of the worst nightmares,” Montreal police Chief Fady Dagher told reporters several hours later, as the alert was lifted.
A second police officer who was critically injured is now stable in hospital. A civilian sustained minor injuries.
Police say the suspect was killed early in the operation during a confrontation with officers.
Dagher would not identify the officer who lost his life, but indicated it’s the first police officer killed in the line of duty in Montreal since 2002.
“He was a great, great police officer. He was so passionate,” said Dagher, who described the conversation with the officer’s brother as “very tough.”
Police did not provide any information about the civilian who died.
Officers were called to Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges borough around 11:35 a.m. after the report — called in by a civilian — of a gun muzzle sticking out of the window of a hotel near Trans Island and De Courtrai avenues.
Dagher says the officers who arrived on scene were shot at while at street level. The police chief would not describe the shooting as a police ambush.
“We’re investigating to know about his motives,” said Dagher, who also would not confirm the suspect was wearing army camouflage clothing, as could be seen in multiple images and videos shared to social media.
An emergency alert warned people in the area about an armed and dangerous suspect and urged them to stay indoors and away from windows.
“We’re asking everyone to avoid the sector. The situation is not under control,” SPVM spokesperson Jean-Pierre Brabant said as the situation was developing.
Dagher later clarified the alert went out when the suspect was already dead.
Quebce Premier Christine Fréchette said she was “deeply shaken” by the events in Montreal.
“My thoughts are with the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives, the individuals who were injured, members of the police service, and everyone affected by this tragedy,” Fréchette wrote on X.
“I would like to thank the police officers, first responders, and all those working on the ground. As the operation and investigation are still ongoing, it is essential to allow the authorities to do their work and to avoid speculation.
“Such acts have no place in our society.”
A witness told CityNews he heard multiple gunshots and people firing between two buildings.
“I saw the gunfight and we see the police going down,” said Jacob Coutu. “We see the gunman, the hostile gunman coming down, hiding and fighting. You know, he recharges it. He had like a rifle or something. He recharges it and yeah, it was pretty crazy.”
Tanner Burell, another witness, said police showed up very soon after he heard initial gunshots.
“From our vantage point, we got to see the police hiding behind a pillar (and) we saw one of them get hit,” Burell recalled. “And then we saw what looked like maybe the gunman coming around that pillar, and then that person also got hit.”
“There was a couple more gunshots. We heard the glass break from the windows.”
Guests at the Hilton Garden Inn, near De Courtrai Avenue and Décarie Boulevard, were asked to take cover in a freezer, according to a person staying at the hotel.
Quebec’s Transport Department closed sections of the Décarie Expressway and other parts of the highway network in the central part of the city due to the police operation.
Officials also closed the Namur metro station in the area. The STM said service on its orange and blue metro lines were interrupted at the time
In a post on X, Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada offered her condolences to the police officer’s family members and loved ones.
“My thoughts are also with all those affected by this tragedy,” she wrote.
The story is developing.
