A man who's been on the list of Canada’s top 25 most wanted fugitives for murder and drug trafficking charges in Saskatoon dating back to 2022 has been arrested at the airport in Montreal while police say he was returning to Canada.
Quebec provincial police say officers from the Sûreté du Québec Airport Unit, the Mascouche Major Crime Investigation Division and the Canada Border Services Agency arrested Jonathan Ouellet-Gendron on several Canada-wide warrants at Montreal’s Trudeau International Airport on Saturday.
A Saskatoon Police Service news release from May 2022 says Ouellet-Gendron, 36, was first sought by police after being identified as a suspect in a homicide that occurred in the 700 Block of Melrose Avenue.
He was added to the Bolo Program — a list identifying the top 25 most wanted fugitives in Canada — in May 2023, taking the 10th spot.
Quebec police say Ouellet-Gendron is expected to appear in a Montreal courthouse Sunday.
Saskatoon police said in May 2022 they responded to a report of an injured man, followed by multiple reports of shots being fired. Another injured person was reported to have been taken to hospital, police said.
When they arrived at 700 Melrose Ave., they said they found 29-year-old Brandon Baxandall dead behind an apartment building. Soon afterwards, police said they were looking to identify two men of slim builds that were seen fleeing the area in dark clothing — one carrying a bag with a strap.
On May 24, 2022, police announced that Ouellet-Gendron was charged with first-degree murder in Baxandall's death. They said he was still at large and warned the public that he was believed to be in possession of a firearm and should not be approached.
Last year, Mohamed Abdula Ali was sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the case.
Late last year Saskatoon police posted an eight-minute video on YouTube about their response and investigation into the homicide. It included dashcam video from a police cruiser arriving at the scene, where a person in the corner of the frame can be seen performing chest compressions on a person on the ground.
There's also video of officers with rifles arriving at the scene and more video of officers clearing units in the apartment building. Still photos of handguns are shown, and the video said three firearms were recovered in the hours after the investigation began.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
