Threats lead to arrest

A local man is facing criminal charges after being arrested in connection with recent threats made to the Kateri Memorial Hospital Centre (KMHC).

The hospital had to go into lockdown on two separate occasions over the last four weeks, the latest being Saturday, when a man called threatening to enter with a gun. Another threat to shoot also came into the hospital’s landline on November 19, with both incidents prompting lockdowns.

The Kahnawake Peacekeepers believe the same man was behind both threats.

“They were saying that same thing,” said KHMC executive director Valerie Diabo. “They threatened with a shooting to the organization.”

The man called around 2:40 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, said Diabo, who immediately rushed over as soon as she got word of what happened.

“When I received the call, I was in disbelief. I was like, ‘Oh no, not again,” she said. “I’ll be honest, fear set in.”

The lockdown remained in place until 6:30 p.m. A security perimeter was set up by the Peacekeepers around the hospital, and no one could enter or leave the building, in the meantime.

The call had come in just as a holiday party was ending that afternoon, meaning many visitors had to stay put until the lockdown was lifted. Hospital staff were more than happy to make them comfortable, Diabo said.

“Our kitchen staff went into high gear preparing extra meals for our staff and visitors that were here that couldn’t leave,” she said. “They were patient. They were very grateful for being fed and that we took care of them.”

Kahentiióhstha’ (Roberta) Duhaime had to come visit her mother Mary Paul that day, but first had to wait until the coast was clear before she could come.

“There’s something wrong, the person has some issues going on,” she said. “I think that it’s a manifestation of a change in our society. Because people have always had issues, but I don’t think this is something that people considered doing. These kinds of things just didn’t happen before.”

Call traced back to home

Peacekeepers spokesperson Kyle Zachary said this time around investigators were able to trace the number of the caller to a home on North Creek Road.

“The staff member that took the call made note of the number,” Zachary said, saying it led them to an IP address. “It was through an online service that he placed this call.”

Peacekeepers came to the home to arrest the suspect the next day, just before noon.

Joseph So:se Montour now faces six separate charges, including three for uttering threats, two for intimidation, and one for assaulting a Peacekeeper, after having appeared before a judge at the Longueuil courthouse this Monday.

He faces a third count for uttering threats, with police alleging he threatened a Peacekeeper while in custody. Police also claim there was also a struggle during his arrest, prompting the count for assaulting a Peacekeeper.

Diabo declined to comment on the arrest, saying she wanted to hold off as criminal proceedings are now underway.

Montour’s court file reveals he’s been arrested before by the Peacekeepers for making threats, once in 2021 and another time in 2022. He pleaded not guilty following both arrests.

The charges stemming from his 2021 arrest were later withdrawn in 2022. He was also acquitted on charges stemming from his 2022 arrest in 2023.

Though he was acquitted on the threat charge and another for obstructing justice in 2023, the judge did agree to impose a one-year protection order for someone Montour knew who had requested one.

Such requests can be lodged anytime someone has fears someone will harm them or their family, damage their property, or share intimate photos of them, even before any crime has been committed. Conditions can include being barred from communicating or going near the person under the protection order, depending on what the judge orders.

The Eastern Door contacted Montour’s lawyer, and also attempted to reach Montour by phone, but did not hear back by deadline.

As of Thursday, he had yet to plead. A judge was expected to decide that day whether or not he’d be released from custody, but this information was not available by deadline.

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