The man who allegedly opened fire on a police officer from the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) late Wednesday evening in downtown Montreal was wanted in Ontario for a series of violent crimes, some of which were committed with gun.
Everything suggests that Maurice Hepbourne, 32, knew very well that he was wanted by the Ontario police and that he would risk ending up in prison if the SPVM police officers managed to catch him by the collar.
In late May, Kingston police issued a wanted poster with photo in a bid to locate Hepbourne.
The latter was wanted for various crimes committed using a firearm, domestic violence, mischief and theft, among others.
The police had seen fit to warn the public not to approach Hepbourne, as he was considered “armed and dangerous”.
In all likelihood, Maurice Hepbourne would have recently taken refuge in the metropolis and he was considered to be a person of no fixed abode.
Several calls were made to 911 late Wednesday evening to report the presence of an armed man who was threatening people on the public road.
When the first police officers arrived on the scene, Maurice Hepbourne allegedly fled and it was finally in an alley located near the intersection of Fort and Tupper streets that he opened fire in the direction of the police officers chasing him. .
Photo Agence QMI, Erik Peters
The scene was also filmed by a resident of the area. You can clearly hear the two shots ring out, then the injured policeman exclaim “Ah fuck!”. He then grabs his radio transmitter to say calmly: “20-2, I was shot”.
Maurice Hepbourne, who accidentally shot himself in the leg during the shooting, was arrested about thirty minutes later, a few dozen meters away.
Photo QMI Agency, Maxime Deland
The murder weapon was also found near the scene of the arrest.
Hepbourne was due to be questioned by investigators during the day Thursday.