Organized crime figure Gregory Woolley killed in shooting southeast of Montreal

A prominent organized crime figure was killed in a shooting Friday morning in a parking lot in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., according to CBC/Radio-Canada.

Multiple sources told CBC/Radio-Canada that Gregory Woolley was the victim of the shooting, which took place on Boulevard du Séminaire in the city about 40 kilometres southeast of Montreal around 10:30 a.m. Sources also told CBC/Radio-Canada that Woolley's wife and child witnessed the shooting.

Quebec provincial police confirm that a 51-year-old man died.

Images from the scene show police tape in a parking lot and an ambulance on the scene.

Police say they are still looking for a black SUV that could have been used as a getaway car. A charred black SUV was found still burning in Montreal's Pointe-Saint-Charles neighbourhood Friday morning. Police won't confirm if the two are linked.

Originally from Haiti, in the 1990s Woolley was the leader of the Syndicates, a street gang that worked for the Hells Angels.

He later became a member of the Rockers motorcycle gang, a subsidiary of the Hells Angels. Police say that Woolley was a close confidant of the late Hells Angels boss, Maurice Boucher.

According to retired Montreal detective Phillipe Paul who has close knowledge of organized crime in the city, Woolley went on to become the first Black full-fledged Hells Angels member.

"I actually arrested him myself in the early 2000s ... in his car, we found guns and bulletproof vests," said Paul.

"While he was in the cell, I received a phone call at my office saying to let him go or I would probably not survive the day. I had protection to go to court, we went to court and he was found guilty and did time." 

WATCH | Retired SPVM detective outlines Woolley's rise and fall: 

A retired Montreal detective recalls Gregory Woolley's career as a mob boss

1 year ago

Duration 1:03

Gregory Woolley, a 51-year-old Quebec man with ties to organized crime, was shot and killed Friday. Retired detective Philippe Paul explains his rise and fall.

Woolley served time for drug trafficking and conspiracy to murder but was released on parole in November 2021. According to police sources, Woolley had been warned by the authorities that there was a price on his head.

"He recently had a lot of warnings: shootings in and around his house, a fire in his house, and unfortunately for him today he got shot and killed," said Paul.

"I do believe he was one of the main targets for criminal activities to go down this year in Montreal." 

According to investigative journalist Julian Sher, who co-authored a book on the Hells Angels, Woolley was able to act as a bridge between street gangs, the Hells Angels and the Mafia — even while incarcerated. 

"The Montreal mafia leaders considered Woolley to be an equal to them," he told Let's Go. 

"That's why he was so powerful. He just got out of jail in November 2021 and he was going to be, in one way or another, a marked man." 

WATCH | The shooting is the latest incidence of violence involving organized crime 

Breaking down Montreal's latest wave of organized crime-related violence

1 year ago

Duration 4:24

A string of recent shootings has made headlines, including the attempted assassination of a man some believe is the current leader of the city's famed Italian mafia. We look at what could have led to the incidents, and what they might mean. Updated Nov. 29, 2023 with new information.