Two people are in police custody, three were sent to hospital and about 100 others were left out in the cold for hours after a violent brawl in Montreal overnight.
The chaotic altercation led to the complete evacuation of an apartment building in Ville Saint-Laurent in the middle of a snowstorm during the early morning hours on Sunday.
A 26-year-old man was taken out of the building on Crepeau Street in handcuffs Sunday afternoon. Officers said he is one of two key suspects in their 20s who were arrested in connection the incident.
“I’m not feeling good about my city right now,” said John Insogna, a resident who lives next door.
According to police, multiple 911 calls came in around 4 a.m. reporting a fight involving several people.
“When police arrived, they found three victims, three men that were transported to hospital with upper body injuries, possibly caused by a sharp object,” said Montreal police spokesperson Jeanne Drouin.
The lives of the victims, aged 19, 26 and 40, are not in danger.
During the melee, someone pulled a fire alarm. Firefighters arrived on the scene but didn’t find a fire. Still, about 100 residents were ordered to leave the building in the dead of night. They were forced out of their beds and into the cold snowstorm outdoors.
“We asked the STM for two buses to get the people warm and everything,” Drouin told Global News.
Police spent hours trying to figure out who in the crowd was a witness, a victim, or a suspect. People were only let back into their homes long after the sun rose.
“Police had to first make sure that there was nobody else inside injured, or no other suspects either, so that took some time,” Drouin said.
By midday, the scene was still bustling with police activity. Residents of the building Global News approached said they only spoke Spanish.
Investigators analyzed the area intently while concerned residents looked on.
“Stabbings and shootings are just not something you want to hear about every day,” said Insogna.
He pointed to a 71-year-old man being shot to death last Monday just a few kilometres away.
“Being a father with three kids less than five years old, it’s getting concerning,” he said, while expressing gratitude for the work police have done to fight the violence in the area.
Officers continued to interview witnesses and gather evidence on Sunday. Authorities say that because so many people were involved in the incident more arrests are possible.