Lawrence (Larry) Cooney survived at least two attempts on his life.
A man formerly known to police as a West End gang enforcer has been charged with drug trafficking. I am being asked. A Montreal court alleges he was in possession of a firearm when he was arrested.
Lawrence (Larry) Cooney, 53, of Verdun was scheduled to hold a bail hearing on Tuesday, but defense attorney Dominic Chouffy said Salvatore at the Quebec Court would Judge Macia of the court requested an extension.
"Mr. Cooney has a past that I must assess," Shufi told Macia, saying he had not yet decided whether to request a bail hearing. , he agreed to move Cooney's case to September 1.
Cooney has been in custody since being arrested by Montreal police on July 5 and charged with drug possession for trafficking the next day. , possession of restricted or prohibited firearms, and improper storage of firearms.
He was also charged with possessing a firearm, even though he was prohibited from possessing one. In 2011, a judge issued an order barring Cooney from owning a firearm for life, part of the sentence Cooney received after pleading guilty to six counts of assault. did.
Cooney's criminal record includes his three-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to extortion and assault for causing bodily harm in 2013. . On April 12, 2012, an impulsive gambler was called into a bar in LaSalle, then known as a West End gang hangout, to discuss a $20,000 poker debt with another man. When he did, he was invited into the kitchen, where he was beaten by Cooney and two other men who kicked and punched him. A severe blow to the man's back broke three ribs. He also threatened to pour boiling oil on his victims.
In the 1990s, Cooney said that police were believed to be controlled by the West End Gang. was a security guard at the bar Do Drop In. The walls of the bar were lined with photographs of men who had become informants for West End gangs.
In 2006, Regie des Alcools revoked the bar's liquor license. One reason he said was that Montreal police believed Cooney was involved in a violent dispute to control drug trafficking in Pointe-St-Charles. On April 1, 2005, police requested that the bar be closed after someone attempted to kill Cooney near his inn. Cooney was wounded and another frequenter of the bar, Alexandre Desmarais, was killed.
In June 2003, an attempt was made to kill Cooney at Chateauguay.
pcherry@postmedia.com
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Gangs of Montreal , Episode 3: West End Gangs and Robbers of the Century
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