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Moroccan man presses for answers about son's death

Shot by Montreal cop in 2005 Let's see police and coroner's reports: lawyer

by Irwin Block
Source: Montreal Gazette March 15, 2008

It's more than two years since his son was shot dead by a Montreal police officer in front of a Côte des Neiges mosque.

But Mohamed Bennis has not given up in his efforts to see the police and coroner's reports so he can learn the details of what happened to his son, Mohamed Anas Bennis, on Dec. 1, 2005. So far, his request has been denied, and Bennis Sr. has received only oral reports.

Police say the officers shot Bennis, 25, after he attacked the officer with a knife, slashing him in the neck and the leg, during a police operation on Kent Ave.

Bennis, who had no criminal record, was walking home after morning prayers at the mosque.

His father, a financial consultant living in Casablanca, Morocco, has hired Montreal lawyer Alain Arsenault to write to provincial Justice Minister Jacques Dupuis and the Quebec coroner's office to formally request copies of the reports.

At a news conference organized by groups opposed to police brutality, the elder Bennis said yesterday he suspects his son was shot because he was bearded and dressed as a devout Muslim, was caught in an anti-terrorism operation and was mistaken for a terrorist.

A Gazette story two days after the death reported that the officer who shot Bennis was assisting in a Sûreté du Québec operation involving a fraud ring.

Arsenault said he will ask that a public coroner's inquiry be held so the circumstances of Bennis's death can be examined.

"We want to look at the degree of legitimate force used," he said. "Was it not possible to use other methods?" As for the knife Bennis is alleged to have used to attack the officer, Arsenault said he wants to know if fingerprints were lifted from it, and if the blood found matched that of the officer.

"Apparently, there were no fingerprints on the knife. How come?" Arsenault said. "Unless there is a public coroner's inquest, there'll always be doubts." There are two versions of why the father was not allowed to see copies of the reports, the lawyer said. One is that the police report contains confidential information on the police operation. The other, which Arsenault said he rejects, is that this type of report is not made public to protect privacy, because no one faces criminal charges.

Dupuis would not comment on the case, said his press aide, Philippe Archambault.

A protest march is planned for today at 3 p.m. at Berri and Ste. Catherine Sts.