Montrealers rally around family of man who died after police operation in Saint-Michel

WARNING: This story contains descriptions of police using force against an individual.

A crowd of people made their distrust of Montreal's police corp known Sunday afternoon as they marched toward the Saint-Michel police post, just a few blocks south of where Abisay Cruz died on March 30.

His was the second death following an operation by the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal  (SPVM) in less than 12 hours that weekend. Quebec's police watchdog, known by its French acronym BEI, has launched investigations into both cases.

"The residents of this neighbourhood are anxious," said community organizer Stéphanie Germain, speaking in French at the start of the march. It began in front of the residence where police were dispatched near the intersection of Pie-XI Boulevard and 47th Street. 

Members of Cruz's family stood at a distance behind her, opting not to speak due to the ongoing BEI investigation.

Some wore balaclavas and black hoodies with a picture of Cruz smiling and holding a cake on his 29th birthday, which he celebrated less than two weeks before he died. 

"We were told things would get better, but today we're afraid," Germain said. "Unfortunately, today we ask ourselves what is the role of police if not to protect."

"The silence from the SPVM is heavy today."

Maymolina Umaña emigrated to Montreal from El Salvador and worked with Cruz's mother for five years. At Sunday's march, she told CBC the community feels the family's pain.

"Leaving our countries to a country where they give us residence [and] refuge, to then die in that way and at 29 years old, a young man, it's to close the door on a whole life as much for him as for his family," she said in Spanish.

Protestors continued to march past the police branch before turning back and gathering in front of the residence where the intervention took place. During the march, protestors threw pyrotechnics into the air at various points.

SPVM spokesperson Caroline Chèvrefils says police arrested six people  – four for armed assault against an officer and two for assault also against an officer. She says nobody was injured.

Police began to disperse the crowd around 5 p.m. and the event ended around 9 p.m.

On March 30 at 8:06 a.m., a call was placed to 911 reporting a person in crisis behind a residence, according to initial information released by the BEI.