With more information coming out this week on the freak shooting which took place in Dollard-des-Ormeaux last Sunday (4/08/2024), it is clear as day who escalated the situation, nearly killing a father son. The SPVM (Montreal Police Department) who managed the situation so poorly, they almost paralyzed 18-year-old Abdel-Rahman Abdallah, nearly killing him. If it had not been for his courageous father using his own body as a human shield, to protect Abdel-Rahman from the onslaught of bullets coming from the SPVM, he would’ve been dead.
26-year-old Nackeal Hickey, a Rollin 90’s street gang member, had gone to settle a dispute at a childhood friend’s home last Sunday evening. A disagreement happened during the conversation in which Hickey threatened his friend with a pistol. A struggle for the pistol ensued, which led to an accidental shot fired, injuring no one. A witness, the childhood friend’s grandmother, had seen the altercation take place and phoned the police. Panicked, Hickey used his pistol to intimidate a car passing by, with a woman driving, hoping the automobilist would give up the car. This did not work, this is when he would use the same technique on the Abdallah family, who were unloading their SUV after coming back from a camping trip.
Police arrived on the scene within seconds of Hickey trying to carjack the family. This is when the shootout happened. Authorities, at the time of the shooting, believed that Abdel-Rahman Abdallah and his father were the suspects in question and fired a total of 30 to 40 times in their direction. Police shot 18-year-old Abdel-Rahman in the back, 2 centimeters from his spine, which is when his father, Houssam Abdallah, used his body as cover from the flurry of bullets being shot by the police. 52-year-old Houssam Abdallah got struck with 5 bullets in the back. The duo were then left on the ground suffering from gunshot wounds and bleeding profusely. When authorities moved in after the fire, a half hour to an hour later, they handcuffed the innocent victims, who were rushed to the hospital. Both victims made it out alive, while Nackeal Hickey was shot multiple times, he recovered and appeared in court Tuesday.
Abdel-Rahman told the media that he is still worried for his father’s health, who is still recovering in the hospital. He told the media during the shooting he had seen his father shot in the hip, leg and shoulder. Little did he know, his father was struck another 2 other times. “I’m really scared. I pray that he is well and safe. We’re taking it a day at a time. He had surgery Wednesday.” he concluded. The daughter of Houssam Abdallah, Jana Abdallah was also implicated in the shooting, but managed to make it out without injuries.
It seems so far that Nackeal Hickey did not shoot the father and son duo, but rather the gunshots came from the SPVM. Demanding for the car keys while flaunting his gun screaming “Give me the keys, give me the keys!”. The father and son, along with the daughter, ran for cover towards their house, which is when Hickey shot towards police, confirmed Abdel-Rahman. Nackeal then sought refuge in the SUV. He has been accused of 15 charges, including 4 charges for attempted murder, all of which were towards police officers. These four police officers had chosen not to make their names public. Keep in mind, no officers were injured during this altercation.
Nackeal Hickey also appeared in court Wednesday. Hickey has had a scandalous past, pleading guilty of a prison escape which occurred 8 years ago in 2016. He was at large for a certain time. Hickey also had legal trouble the following year in relation to aggravated assault and being in possession of a weapon.
The BEI (Quebec Internal Affairs) have not finished their investigation for this event, but we can only hope that certain police officers will be held accountable for their actions, which is highly unlikely. “In events like these, you can find yourself in a chaotic situation with bullets whizzing by near you… You can’t have 100% control of these situations.” says retired police officer Andre Gelinas, also a shooting instructor. While Gelinas may have a point, it does not justify shooting at innocent civilians who the authorities have no context about. That’s how bodies uselessly pile up.
Stephane Wall, another retired officer, admits that Montreal is the “Poor kid, when it comes to shooting qualifications.” The SPVM requires its officers to have one mandatory shooting test per year, in an environment which is not at all like the situations they are regularly put in. Shooting at a cardboard cut-out, with no pressure and in still calmness. Maybe it would be a bright idea to sufficiently train officers before giving them a loaded pistol and putting them in dangerous situations. So, they, themselves don’t become a danger to the public, which was exactly the case Sunday evening.
Jana Abdallah is rightfully frustrated at how the incident had taken place, stating to the media that the amount of shots fired by police is ridiculous, judging how this was a residential sector with kids playing outside nearly everyday. There is also the fact that a stray bullet missed a 7-year-old kid’s head by merely inches while he was in his room.
What frustrates Jana Abdallah more, is the fact that her brother and father had been handcuffed after a whole hour suffering from gunshot wounds on the ground. “They say it’s for their safety, but I still do not get the idea… My father was unconscious and unable to move and me neither.” states Abdel-Rahman. We will have more information on this matter once the investigation and ballistics report is done on the BEI’s part. We pray that Houssam Abdallah has a speedy recovery and all our prayers are with the family.
