Open in full screen mode The police established a security perimeter around the scene of the shooting. Radio-Canada Feature being tested Log inCreate my account Speech synthesis, based on artificial intelligence, makes it possible to generate spoken text from 'a written text. Gregory Woolley, an influential person in the world of organized crime, was shot and killed in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Friday. According to the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), which is taking over the investigation, the Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu police officers were called around 10:30 a.m. to go to the parking lot of a shopping center, boulevard du Séminaire , where the presence of a seriously injured man was reported. The 51-year-old man was transported to a hospital, where his death was noted, said the SQ. His partner and their child were with him at the time of the incident, but they were not targeted.
Gregory Woolley, an influential person in the world of organized crime, was shot and killed in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu on Friday.
Gregory Woolley was a major figure in organized crime and had been a member of the Rockers, the former school club of the Hells Angels.
He was known as the godfather street gangs in Montreal.
An investigation carried out in 2013 by the SQ and the police services of the agglomeration of Longueuil and Laval identified Woolley as being a trusted man of Maurice “Mom” Boucher, the former war leader. of the Hells Angels. He was the only black person to have reached such a level among criminal bikers.
Gregory Woolley, who had been imprisoned, had been on parole since November 2021 .
According to police sources, there was a price on his head and the police had warned him.
His neighbors' house was targeted by error by several gunshots in May 2022. A fire caused by a Molotov cocktail, this time in the garage of Gregory Woolley's residence, followed three months later.
In an interview with the CBC network, a former investigator from the anti-gang squad of the Montreal City Police Service (SPVM), Philippe Paul, said he knew the criminal well having arrested him in the early years 2000.
Gregory Woolley had been accused and convicted of drug trafficking on several occasions, relates the ex-investigator.
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We know that this man killed several people in Montreal and the surrounding area. He was a hitman for the Hells Angels, he killed people, so the best way to eliminate your witness is to kill him. This is what happened with him.
A quote from Philippe Paul, former investigator of the SPVM anti-gang squad
Philippe Paul adds that Gregory Woolley worked not only with the Hells but also with the Sicilian mafia.
Usually, when we warn these people [that there is a price on their heads], we know that they will continue their activities, but at some point, they will make a mistake, and it will happen. These so-called "opportunity" mean that a hitman “can do it”, whether in a day, a week, a month or a year. It had been hanging above his head for a long time, explains Philippe Paul.
I think he was one of the main targets to be killed this year in Montreal, adds the investigator.
According to Daniel Renaud, business journalist criminal for La Presse, such a murder could be a sign of other events to come. It is certain that when we eliminate an individual like Gregory Woolley, it is probably not over, he declared Friday on ICI RDI.
There could be a response from Woolley's allies. Or will it be Gregory Woolley's opponents, from his group, who will continue their work? But what I've been seeing since the start of 2023 is really high-level conflict. It's been a long time since we saw this […]. We haven't seen this since 2016, added Mr. Renaud.
The SQ has not arrested any suspect in this case for moment.
However, investigators are looking for a black sport utility vehicle (SUV). Witnesses reportedly saw him storm off in the moments following the murder of Gregory Woolley.
The vehicle burned on rue de Sébastopol in Pointe-Saint-Charles.
The police are actively looking for the driver of this vehicle. SQ spokesperson Camille Savoie calls on anyone who has information to pass it on to the authorities.
Any relevant information related to a black sport utility vehicle that allegedly left the scene quickly here this morning is relevant to our investigators. Therefore, any individual who has information is asked to contact the criminal information center of the Sûreté du Québec.
In the Pointe district -Saint-Charles, Friday in Montreal, the police also reported that a black vehicle had been set on fire on Rue de Sébastopol. However, it is too early to say that this event is linked to the murder that occurred in Montérégie.
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