Two men charged with second-degree murder, arson after Old Montreal fire killed mother and daughter

MONTREAL — Two men have been charged with second-degree murder and arson after a fire erupted in an Old Montreal building, killing a mother and daughter from France.

Justin Fortier-Trahan, 20, and Juventino Hernandez Pelaez, 18, were charged in the deaths of Leonor Geraudie, 43, and her seven-year-old daughter Verane Reynaud Geraudie, who were in the building when it caught fire Oct. 4.

The two men also face a charge of arson causing bodily harm in connection to another man, and recklessly endangering life by damaging a property by fire or explosion.

Montreal police said Friday that Fortier-Trahan was suspected of throwing an incendiary device into the building while Hernandez Pelaez was suspected of driving the getaway car.

The fire was the second deadly blaze in Old Montreal in less than two years, after seven people were killed in a March 2023 fire in a building that housed short-term rentals.

City records show that both buildings belong to Emile Benamor, who also owns a third building in the neighbourhood that was hit by gunfire earlier this week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 12, 2024.

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