Raynald Desjardins has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to murder former mobster Salvatore Montagna during the bloody Montreal mafia war.
Desjardins was once a close associate of longtime Montreal Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto until he became part of an alliance which included Montagna that tried to overthrow the Rizzuto crime family while Vito was in prison. A conflict developed within that rival alliance back in 2011 which lead to Montagna being murdered.
“Raynald Desjardins“
Montagna was the former acting boss of the Bonanno crime family of the New York Mafia who was deported back to Canada where he was born because of criminal activity. The bloody Montreal mafia war begins shortly after his deportation in 2010 with a series of hits against the hierarchy of the Rizzuto Family. A rift developed with in the rival faction and Desjardins barely survives an attempted mob hit in September of 2011 which he believes was engineered by Montagna. The former NY mobster is assassinated in November of 2011 in Vaudry Island, Charlemagne at age of 40.
“Salvatore Montagna“
Raynald is later charged with the murder along with five other defendants who are arrested a week after him in December of 2011 with two more arrest which followed in 2013. Authorities were able to decrypt messages sent via Blackberry by Raynald and other members of the fractured Montreal mob faction linking him to the murder and ongoing plans to attack other clan members loyal to Montagna.
This plea to a lesser charge of conspiracy to murder will help Raynald avoid what was expected to be a long drawn out first degree murder trial. A sentencing hearing has been set for December 21st 2015 where Desjardins is still believed to be facing life in prison. The remaining co-defendants in the case are set to go to trial in January.
