Café owners urged to speak up about attacks
Two more attacks were reported within an hour of each other Monday morning. The first came just after 6 a.m. at Café Nouba at 5329 St. Laurent Blvd. near Maguire Street, police said.
"The front window was broken, and an object — a Molotov cocktail — was thrown inside," said Const. André Leclair. "The fire was quickly extinguished, and there's minimum damage to the building and to the front of the building."
It's the second time the St. Laurent Boulevard establishment has been attacked in a month.
The second incident Monday happened about 45 minutes later at Café Vegas, near Jean-Talon Street and Sixth Avenue. The window was broken after a flaming device was thrown at it.
Five similar attacks have been reported in Montreal in recent weeks, all involving Molotov cocktails.
Police say they believe the attacks are linked and could be connected to a Mafia turf war, an offensive by street gangs or copycat arsonists.
But the business owners have been reluctant to talk about them publicly — a response the president of the Union of Quebec Bar Owners said is a mistake.
"The owners of these bars and cafés need to talk to the police," Peter Sergakis said. "People are at risk now. Somebody is going to get killed now with these fires."
"It is only warnings that they’re given," he said. "They don’t want to destroy the place, but they want to pass on the message that they want to take control and that the district is ours."
Former journalist Michel Auger, who has written extensively about organized crime, said he believes the most likely suspects are street gang members.
"Because of the nature of the crime — it is not something very sophisticated," Auger said.
The owner of Café Nouba, John Zoumis, said he is confident the attack on his business is not linked to the other incidents, since unlike the other owners, he is not Italian.
"I’m a Greek restaurant operator — and I own a restaurant, not a bar."