Suspect charged in hit-and-run
A man who has often been homeless in recent years appeared before a judge at the Montreal courthouse on Friday where he was charged with the hit-and-run death of 79-year-old Zèlia Ponte Araujo.
Steven Harley Pinnell, 33, made a brief appearance before Quebec Court Judge Salvatore Mascia.
Through his lawyer, Pinnell asked that the charges not be read into the court record. He was ordered to be detained for a bail hearing on Monday.
Pinnell is charged with leaving the scene of an accident where it was apparent the victim died, theft of the Chevrolet Silverado that police believe struck Araujo, and possession of a stolen vehicle.
Araujo was struck by a vehicle Sunday morning while she was heading home after having stopped at a grocery store to pick up a few things for lunch.
Pinnell was arrested the following day after the Ontario Provincial Police responded to reports of a Silverado seen swerving on a highway in northern Ontario.
The vehicle had been reported stolen in Montreal days before Araujo was killed. The Montreal police believe it is the same vehicle that struck her. Pinnell was charged with a series of offences in Ontario and was detained before he was transferred to Montreal.
Pinnell was described in media reports as a resident of Ontario. However, he has an extensive criminal record at the Montreal courthouse and at others in Quebec.
At the time of the hit-and-run, he was on probation as part of a sentence he received on July 26 at the Montreal courthouse after pleading guilty to mischief and theft. He admitted to having smashed the window of a car from which he stole credit cards and a pair of glasses. He served a 30-day prison term.
According to court records, over the past few years Pinnell has listed his residence as the location of a charitable organization on RenéLévesque Blvd. E. that provides
housing for people who are homeless.
Last year, in a case where he was charged with simple drug possession, he listed his address as the Old Brewery Mission.
In another case last year, Pinnell listed his address as a drug therapy centre in Terrebonne. He pleaded guilty to theft and mischief and was sentenced to a four-month prison term. In 2014, Pinnell listed his address as being at a centre for drug addiction in the Eastern Townships.