Teen girl killed in St-Léonard parking space dispute shot by accident, accused says
One of the two men on trial for the murder of 15-year-old Meriem Boundaoui took to the witness stand on Monday to testify in his defence.
Salim Touaibi, 30, told the 13-people on the jury in his case that he only opened fire on the car Boundaoui was seated in with the intention of scaring men who were standing outside it.
“The reason for the shots, it was to create fear,” Touaibi said.
“How many shots did you fire,” defence lawyer Marc Labelle asked.
“I don’t know. I was scared,” Touabi said. “It was action and reaction.”
Labelle also asked his client how many people were inside the vehicle the victim was seated in.
“I saw no one in the vehicle. The windows were tinted,” Touaibi said. “There was no intention to harm someone. There was no intention to strike someone. It was to scare them.”
The jury hearing the trial has been told the girl was shot in the context of a dispute between the owners of a nearby bakery and a hair salon. The dispute was over parking spaces.
Last week, the prosecution declared that its evidence was done in the lengthy first-degree murder trial at the Montreal courthouse.
On Monday, Superior Court Justice Yvan Poulin informed the jury that there will be a defence.
Touaibi and Aymane Bouadi, 30, are both charged with the first-degree murder of the girl.
Boundaoui was shot in the St-Léonard borough on Feb. 7, 2021. The jury has been told she was killed by accident.
“I want you to know who (Touaibi) is,” Labelle said, while explaining his client would take the stand after two police officers who worked on the homicide investigation were called as witnesses.
“An accused (in Canada) does not have to prove his innocence. That is our system. That is the basis of our system,” Labelle said.