24-year-old man stabbed, pepper sprayed, and beaten by masked mob in downtown Montreal
A Montreal man was pepper-sprayed, kicked, dragged across the pavement, and stabbed by a group of masked men near Place-des-Arts, an attack that left him with a punctured and collapsed lung, broken ribs and severe facial fractures.
A 24-year-old man is speaking out after a brutal attack by more than ten men of colour near Place-des-Arts metro station in downtown Montreal left him hospitalized with serious injuries.
For security reasons and out of fear of retaliation, Rebel News is protecting the identities of both the victim and his mother.
Montreal police confirmed that a robbery involving multiple suspects occurred on August 26. According to police, the victim was pepper-sprayed, beaten and stabbed with a sharp object.
The victim told Rebel News he had been with friends near the metro when a group of roughly two dozen masked individuals appeared nearby. He described them as dressed mostly in black and said, “They were all wearing COVID masks to hide their faces.”
Later that night, he says the group approached him from behind.
“One of them put his hand on my shoulder. He pulled me around, and immediately I… I got hit in the face with pepper spray.”
What followed, according to the victim, was a prolonged and vicious beating.
“Then they started punching me, kicking me, and dragging me along the ground by my bag,” he said. “During that, I was stabbed several times in the chest area, in the back.”
One stab wound punctured his lung. “Air was going in and out through my back. And I didn’t even know I’d been stabbed.”
He says his lung later collapsed and doctors had to remove both air and blood before reinflating it. He also reported broken ribs, facial fractures and continuing problems with vision in his left eye.
His approximately $5,000 Louis Vuitton bag, phone, cards and keys were stolen. Perhaps most disturbing to the family is what allegedly happened around them.
“It affects me quite a bit,” the victim said after being asked about bystanders and friends who did not intervene. “I would at least have intervened.”
His mother remains shaken. “Oh my God! I was angry, I was devastated, and I was worried,” she said after seeing video of the attack.
Asked about safety in Montreal, her answer was unequivocal: “There is no safety in Montreal anymore.”
Police have told Rebel News that no arrests have been made so far.
Alexandra Lavoie
Quebec based Journalist
Alexa graduated with a degree in biology from Laval University. Throughout her many travels, she has seen political instability as well as corruption. While she witnessed social disorder on a daily basis, she has always been a defender of society’s most vulnerable. She’s been around the world several times, and now joins Rebel News to shed light on today’s biggest stories.
