Police think fatal Laval shooting has links to organized crime

The man gunned down in front of a restaurant in Laval on Tuesday was recently under investigation for drug trafficking in the Abitibi region.

The victim was shot outside the Fusion restaurant on Lévesque Blvd. in the city’s St-Vincent-de-Paul district at around 8 p.m. He was taken to a hospital where he was later declared dead. Witnesses told reporters it appeared that a gunman wearing a mask shot the victim outside the restaurant and shot him again as he tried to find refuge inside the eatery. One witness told CTV News that it appeared the gunman used a firearm equipped with a silencer.

On Wednesday, the Sûreté du Québec identified the victim as Sébastien Vena, 46, of Ste-Lucie-des-Laurentides, about 120 kilometres north of Montreal.

Vena, who is reported to have ties to the Hells Angels, had a criminal record that included pleading guilty to having tried to kill two people on Sept. 25, 2004.

According to court records, the case was investigated by a section of the SQ that targeted organized crime in the Laurentians, Laval and Lanaudière region.

A court decision delivered in June revealed that Vena and at least two other men were recently under investigation for drug trafficking in the Abitibi region. In December, police executing search warrants seized three luxury vehicles along with more than $100,000 in cash and weapons.