Murder of Santiago Gaona in Quebec: François Bouchard pleads guilty to second-degree murder

François Bouchard, 33, admitted on Tuesday his guilt in the murder of Santiago Gaona, whose body had been dismembered and then fed through an industrial wood chipper.

Guilty plea for murder followed by dismemberment in Contrecœur

François Bouchard, 33, pleaded guilty on Tuesday morning at Quebec City courthouse to the second-degree murder of Santiago Gaona, 26, according to reporting by ici.radio-canada.ca. He also admitted to committing an act of indignity to his victim's corpse.

Originally charged with first-degree murder, Bouchard thus avoids a jury trial. A life sentence is automatic, but Judge Louis Dionne will have to set, at a hearing scheduled for September, the length of the ineligibility period for parole — between 10 and 25 years in cases of second-degree murder.

The facts: throat-slashing, dismemberment and attempted destruction of the body

The murder was committed between 8 and 16 September 2023 in the accused's residence in Contrecœur, in the Montérégie region, in a context of hard drug use. According to the joint summary of facts filed with the Court, Bouchard allegedly told a childhood friend that he had slit Gaona's throat with a knife inside his house, before cutting the body into pieces in the basement.

The investigation established that Santiago Gaona, a man of Colombian origin living in the Montreal region, had not been in contact with his relatives from 9 September 2023 onwards.

During the night of 17 September 2023, Bouchard's childhood friend presented himself at a Quebec City police station to report the situation. He told police that Bouchard had come to his place earlier in the evening to use his industrial wood chipper. A fire had also been lit to burn certain parts of the body.

The police officers sent to the scene found the wood chipper present as well as several pieces of human flesh. The friend had further indicated to investigators that Bouchard had told him that the body fitted into four bags, which had been kept for some time in his residence in Contrecœur.

Physical evidence recovered

Analyses carried out at the accused's home made it possible to discover blood spatters from Santiago Gaona in the basement. A finger of the victim was also found in the outdoor fireplace, the Court document specifies.

François Bouchard was eventually arrested in Kahnawake on 17 September 2023.

Prosecution's submission and the accused's condition

The prosecuting counsel, Me François Godin, indicated that he will request an ineligibility period at the upper end of the range provided by law. The defence lawyer, Me Marc Labelle, has not yet pronounced himself on the matter; he obtained the deferral of sentencing observations to the autumn.

This delay will allow Bouchard to undergo planned surgery to treat kidney stones, before his transfer to a federal penitentiary. At his appearance, the accused presented visible sequelae — curved and trembling fingers, speech problems — linked to a fire that he allegedly started himself whilst in detention.

Bouchard is meanwhile still facing charges of arson and threats towards correctional staff in a separate matter, still pending before Quebec Superior Court.

Accomplices: one conviction, one trial to come

The mother of Santiago Gaona followed Tuesday's hearing by videoconference. The prosecution indicated that she will present a statement during sentencing observations.

A woman, Cassandra Major, who had helped Bouchard dispose of the body, has already been sentenced to 33 months in prison for her role in the matter. Another alleged accomplice, Jean-Philippe Lamontagne, is still awaiting his trial.

Source: Google News CA — Québec (FR)