A 50-year-old Quebecois woman who underestimated her son’s dangerousness met a horrible end when he murdered her in cold blood, hitting her several times with a sharp and blunt weapon, leaving more than 80 wounds all over her body, those of the coroner, uncovered report said.
Nicole Cantin was killed on February 6, 2019 by her then 29-year-old son Patrick Fortin.
According to the coroner’s report, Dr. Jean-Marc Picard, relations between Mrs. Cantin and her son were very strained. He was known for mental problems.
“Ms Cantin had been warned of the possibility that something serious could happen, but she denied it. She defended her son, who was everything to her,” the coroner’s report said.
This stubbornness became her undoing while her son violently and mercilessly attacked her.
Photo taken from Facebook
Patrick Fortin
“The pathologist counted and detailed the presence of 83 sharp and blunt gun wounds all over the victim’s body. Thirty-eight of them are deep and go to the bone, resulting in fractures of the skullcap.
Ms. Cantin’s death is due to multiple trauma from a sharp and blunt weapon.
Unusual discovery
The context of the discovery of the victim’s body is unusual.
On the morning of February 7, patrol officers from the Quebec City Police Department discovered a vehicle stuck on Boulevard de l’Ormière.
The doors were unlocked, the keys were in the ignition and the clutch was engaged. They determined that it was the victim’s car and that his son, who lived at the same address, was known to the police.
On the way to the home of Mrs. Cantin and her son, they discovered his remains. Going down into the basement, they had noticed a very important mess, as well as walls and the ceiling that had been destroyed.
The victim’s body – with numerous marks of violence – lay in a bedroom under a bed cover. Fortin was arrested shortly thereafter.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Mental health in the dock
It’s not the only domestic murder to make headlines in recent years. Mental problems are often associated with it.
Also in February 2019, Maxime Allaire killed his mother, Nathalie Dussault, with a knife. Allaire was known to have an autism spectrum disorder. He was angry because she confiscated his iPod.
The following summer, Violaine Gagnon was killed with a stove and a knife by her son Jean-Philippe Blais in Baie-Saint-Paul.
Because of a mental disorder, he was found not to be punishable.
Excerpts from the report of the coroner
“Ms. Cantin’s son had mental health problems. He lived with his mother and the arrangement was not ideal. During the investigation, all relatives and neighbors confirmed that Ms. Cantin and her son passed each other frequently. These intensified with the consumption of alcohol and made life literally unbearable. Ms. Cantin had been warned of the possibility that something serious could happen, but she denied it. She defended her son, who meant everything to her.
“By removing the cozy blanket covering the floor, they [les policiers] Discover the body of a woman lying prone. She has several large lacerations on her back and buttocks. The body is stiff and cold and resuscitation maneuvers are not possible.”
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