Man stunned by friend’s implication in homicide

Stéphan Parent, a filmmaker who worked with the man arrested in Ontario for the kidnapping of a six-year-old boy, and who knew the man and his wife well, said no one could have predicted the tragic events even if everyone in the couple’s circle hoped their unhealthy relationship would end.

The day before the boy’s mother was killed, Parent spoke to the father whose actions sparked an Amber Alert that had police in two provinces on his trail.

“He was going to couples therapy. The next day, I didn’t hear from him. When the Amber Alert appeared, I tried to reach him, but to no avail,” said Parent, adding he would never have imagined his friend capable of such a thing.

“I never saw him hit his son or his wife. Yes, he could be impulsive and yell. He could hit the counter, but to commit a murder? Never!” he said.

Parent said the relationship between the suspect and his wife was unbearable, however.

“Everyone would tell them, whether on his side or hers, to get out of this relationship,” he said.

According to Parent, the Direction de la protection de la jeunesse (Quebec’s youth protection agency) had become involved in the family’s problems.

The couple separated “at least five times,” Parent said. The father, who worked for an extermination company, even left the house to stay with his parents. He was not isolated, however, and could confide in his parents, his brother and his friend. He was also seeing a psychotherapist.

NO MORBID FASCINATION

Contrary to media reports, the 41-year-old man was not obsessed with stories of murder and kidnapping, Parent said.

“He was fascinated by the world of cinema. He had studied film and wanted to work in the film milieu. If I had done comedy or science fiction, he would still have worked with me,” Parent said.

The filmmaker said the suspect could not even read an autopsy report or police report.

“He would say he couldn’t believe people could do that and he would cry,” Parent said, adding he also witnessed him cry with victims’ families as they shared their stories.

A GREAT MANIPULATOR

What Parent can’t understand is how the person who sparked a search that ended in Ontario could be nice and helpful but also a manipulator. Parent had even begun to distance himself from his friend after having seen changes in his behaviour.

“When I see the timeline of events, to see everything he put his son through instead of leaving him somewhere — he’s only thinking of himself; he’s only thinking of his own welfare. He was always trying to force people into doing something for his own benefit,” he said.