There’s no denying street gangs across Quebec are making their presence known throughout the province. The structures of certain criminal cliques throughout the island of Montreal and Quebec City are solidifying; with the Blood Family Mafia and their drug war against the Hells Angels MC hogging up most of the spotlight in news headlines throughout this past year. One of these gangs include Arab Power, which is allegedly being headed by Youness ‘Frero’ Aithaqi and, well, the now-late Sylvain ‘Haboub’ Kabbouchi, who was murdered in Donnacona Penitentiary on July 20th of 2025. An act that had taken many people by surprise, but made sense given Kabbouchi’s past and his standing in the criminal underworld.
We’ve written about Arab Power in the past, even writing a whole Set Profile about the gang. The gang’s name had popped up several times, even tying the gang to the murder of Gregory ‘Picasso’ Woolley. Woolley had warned his peers about the street gangs gaining rapid power in the underworld, stating how reckless these youngins acted. Once Woolley hit the floor and started his journey heading six feet under, Jean-Philippe Celestin was there to replace him, only to have Arab Power stand against the new gang leader.
Celestin gained his Marauders MC patch not long after Woolley’s death, almost acting as a mediator between the bikers, street gangs and the mob; as Woolley had done for a substantial amount of time leading up to his death. Celestin had suffered many shootings on either his property or his mother’s home as well as having his brother Brandon being struck by a flurry of bullets while exiting Elio’s, an Italian restaurant, last year.
On Sunday, July 20th of 2025, Sylvain ‘Haboub’ Kabbouchi was found dead in the showers of his prison wing. A cloudy air surrounds the murder, making the details encompassing the event hazy and vague. News outlets reported a lot more information than the recent prison death of Profit Boyz (Profit Kollectaz) rapper and gang member, Andrew ‘Ali Baba’ Luberisse, in December of last year at the RDP Detention Center. Let’s get into the events surrounding Kabbouchi’s death.
At the tender age of 26, Sylvain ‘Haboub’ Kabbouchi, a founder and leader of Arab Power. A rebel rouser in prisons across Quebec had taken his last breaths. A shank, or what was described as a pointy object had perforated his neck and face in a hectic and violent brawl. This incident had occurred between 10 and 10:30am. The suspect of the murder was also in the same gang as Kabbouchi; Arab Power. Kabbouchi had been at odds with other fellow leaders of the street gang, airing a negative vibe between the members of Arab Power. Multiple sources in the criminal underworld might have been involved in the ‘greenlighting’ Kabbouchi’s assassination, but there currently is no proof to confirm this hypothesis.
Kabbouchi was a major player in the underworld of Laval and its surrounding area in the past five years. Before Arab Power, he had been a member of the Cho BLOCC Mafia in the Chomedy borough of Laval. Eventually he was charged for the murder of Nitchell ‘Crank’ Lapaix, who was shot to death outside of Laval’s Crazy Moon strip club in August of 2021. ‘Crank’ Lapaix had served as Jean-Philippe Celestin’s right hand man at the time. He was eventually arrested for the murder in December of 2022. He was charged alongside Tareck Youssef Baydoun.
When Kabbouchi was arrested for the ‘Crank’ Lapaix murders, he was already doing a bid for a home invasion which snowballed into Kabbouchi kidnapping a pregnant woman. This occurred in January of 2022. The list goes on; in December of 2021, Kabbouchi was caught with 2 kilograms of carfentanyl in Granby, Quebec. Later on, he was arrested for unloading a firearm during a Boisbriand robbery. The murder hadn’t been the first attempt on his life, but rather the third, with Kabbouchi evading two attempted hits on his life.
Kabbouchi hadn’t let his ‘rebel rouser’ attitude simmer and die off while incarcerated but rather put this trait on a pedestal. His name had been tied to various violent incidents as well as comedic incidents. While locked up in Rivieres-Des-Prairies Detention Center he was the suspect in a case where perpetrators cut off an inmate’s tongue for having turned informant. Kabbouchi was never interrogated for this event, denying his involvement while authorities suspected Kabbouchi being the instigator of the incident. More comedic events Kabbouchi had been involved in is when he ordered a pizza, basically mocking the guards, all the while having a good laugh.
Kabbouchi was deemed as a high-risk prisoner with his lawyer stating how he had been withheld activities and education while incarcerated. He stated Kabbouchi’s TV didn’t work, and he had a fridge that was faulty. His cell was searched weekly and he claimed the air in the prison was affecting his health. Authorities also found various things in his cell such as DIY brass knuckles and tobacco.
Kabbouchi was once again arrested in prison for the murders of Noel Garcia-Frias and Justice Owusu ‘Steady’ Tajudeen including members of the Laval’s 24 Gang, Flame Head Boys and Arab Power. Owusu ‘Steady’ Tajudeen had been a member of the 26 Gang, also dubbed ‘Le Regiment’. The Garcia-Frias murder was a case of mistaken identity, an innocent man shot to death in Charlemange.
He was later charged in the result of Projet Mecano (Project Mecano) along with 13 other gang members for the murder of Christopher Shawn ‘Dirty S’ Jean Vilsaint and the previously mentioned victims in the paragraph above. It is unclear but these victims were either members of the 26 Gang (Le Regiment) and another gang aligning with the 26 Gang named ‘Downtown Project’.
Four individuals had been implicated in Kabbouchi’s death. Some of the murderers were even rumored to have been playing cards with intervention officers the day after his murder, as if nothing happened. Two of these individuals were tasked with watching out for correctional officers while the act was taking place. Kabbouchi had eventually been handed a life sentence. Little did we know it would devolve into a death sentence.
Arab Power has been involved in the current BFM/HA drug war, siding with the various street gangs fighting against the imposed 10% tax. AP have also been involved and are the perpetrators of the recent extortion wave that has been taking place in Montreal and its surrounding reasons within the past year of two. To find out more about Arab Power, you can read our Set Profile on the gang at this link…
