Six prisoners were charged towards the 18th of October for the beating they put on Maxime Maheux back in July. Maheux had accumulated a hefty drug debt to the Blood Family Mafia and his entrance to prison was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In fact, Maxime Maheux’s drug habit was so severe that he would commit serious crimes in order to settle his debts. These crimes would eventually land him a sentence of five years in prison. A place where even he wasn’t welcome.
The Reason
Maxime Maheux might have had a million reasons to get high, whether it was to let time pass by or forget about past traumas. Maheux might have gotten away from the prison sentence he was handed or even the beating that the BFM affiliates had put on him if he were to buy his drugs from a different dealer. One that can take more shit from clients, but he landed on dealers that were affiliated with a street gang that have made a hell of a reputation for themselves throughout the past year. The Blood Family Mafia.
His introduction to the Blood Family Mafia was as a client, mindlessly buying drugs from some members and affiliates. Eventually, he wasn’t buying drugs anymore, but rather getting them through fronts, accumulating enough credit for members to pay him and visit with an ultimatum. Do this, and your debt will be settled. Do this, or else. The more Maheux consumed, the more Maheux dug a bigger hole. At a certain point, it was a problem he couldn’t get rid of, being reminded every day of his life as he woke up in a jail cell, day by day. But a problem he asked for nonetheless.
Maheux was stuck between a hard place and a rock. He needed to pay his drug debt. Blood Family Mafia members and associates had either proposed, or insisted he pay his debt off through crime. It would clear Maheux’s debt and keep BFM member’s hands clean. A win-win. Maheux would then partake in a series of three crimes which would eventually lead to his incarceration. It is unknown whether there were more crimes he had partaken in.
The Crimes
One of the jobs consisted of Maheux breaking into a residence, where the resident of the house was beaten to a pulp. We are unaware of who was with Maheux that night, but can confirm he had other people with him. Another job had demanded Maheux to set fire to a ‘hangar’ in Sainte-Marguerite on Boulevard Industrielle on October 31st of 2023. This would only prove to be the Dark Souls MC clubhouse, a major support club for the Hells Angels MC. The last incident he was convicted of was setting flames to an industrial building in Saint-Isidore on November 22nd.
Another event in which Maheux was a part of was one that occurred in Trois-Rivieres. The mission was to send a message to a certain individual who was part of organized crime in the area. Accompanied by a certain crew of two other people, Maheux knocked on the target’s doors. The owner of the home was hesitant to open the door to the group of fellows that were waiting outside.
The 2 other accomplices had decided to break in, each armed with baseball bats while Maheux flashed a pistol. The owner of the residence equipped himself with an axe, which he kept close to the door in case of emergencies such as this event. When the suspects broke in, a fight ensued. The owner had fractured his arm when one of the assailants hit him with a baseball bat. Throughout the struggle, the suspects had decided to flee.
When all was said and done, a total of 6 people had taken part in this plan. One of which snitched. Pinpointing Maheux and revealing his nickname shared throughout the group of acquaintances; ‘Bart Simpson’. The snitch had quickly informed the authorities of the fact that they had stopped at a commerce to buy Ty-Raps on their way to commit the break and entry. Maheux quickly turned and cooperated with authorities upon his arrest.
The Past
Maheux only had one charge in his past before this whole kerfuffle. An assault charge that dated back to 2018 in which he partook in community service to settle. His lawyer notes how he led a steady life after he was stuck with the charge, taking up a job in British Columbia. When the money came in, he became less and less disciplined to stay on the right path. He blew through all the money he had accumulated in a fury of drugs. A lump sum of 30,000$. Soon enough, he would be getting drugs on the front, a mistake that would cost him 5 years of his life.
The Sentencing
This crime spree would soon come to an end throughout the month of February in 2024 when police launched an operation to tackle the increase in violence due to the drug war happening in the east of the province. Maheux would eventually be scooped up by police throughout their operation, ‘Project SCANDALEUX’, which saw the arrests of 36 Blood Family Mafia members and acquaintances.
His lawyer Carole Anne Gagnon would put an emphasis, letting the judge know he only committed these crimes because of his addiction, hoping it would either shed months or years off his sentence. When all was said and done, the judge handed Maxime Maheux 5 years in prison for his crimes at only 25 years old.
Jean-Francois Dion, another criminal scooped up in the efforts of Project SCANDALEUX had sent death threats to Maheux, stating that he would even assault his family when the time came. Dion had ulterior motives to send death threats to Maheux, they were sleeping with the same woman, a fact that would drive anyone in over their heads. Dion was handed a sentence of about 15 months.
The Beating
Maheux was sentenced to 5 years on July 17th, 2024. The charges were for two criminal arsons and one break and entry. Days after his admission to the designated prison he was set to purge his 5 year sentence, he was beaten to a pulp. Maheux was placed in a wing where there were several Blood Family Mafia members and affiliates. Hell for a rat that just snitched on the very same gang.
His fate was determined upon his admission. He wasn’t going to get away scot-free. On July 24th, the 25-year-old man was beaten so severely that prison guards had trouble identifying the man, he was disfigured. This wasn’t the only beating Maheux had gone through, he suffered a secondary beating soon after. A violent reminder of what happens when you throw acquaintances under the bus. Three months later, the individuals which assaulted him would soon be charged.
The Suspects
On October 25th, 2024, authorities set forth charges for the five individuals that had been implicated in the beating of Maxime Maheux on the 24th of July. One of the charges being attempted murder. The attempted murder charge was handed down to a 28-year-old prisoner named Cedric Duchaine, a BFM affiliate. Duchaine is awaiting his trial for the murder of Martin Petit, which had occurred on October 26th of 2021 near the famed La Pyramide in the Sainte-Foy borough of Quebec City. Petit, 37 at the time, was stabbed to death while exiting his freshly parked vehicle.
Duchaine was accused of this crime along with another man by the name of Eli-Samuel Bazinet. Not only was Duchaine awaiting trial for the murder of Martin Petit, but also had an attempted murder charge he was awaiting trial for. The attempted murder occurred in March of 2020 for attempting to take Olivier Larrivee’s life. He was also arrested in December of 2021 along with nine other individuals charged with operating a drug trafficking ring.
The second suspect was named Nicolas Laverdiere-Bernier, and was handed a 45-month sentence in September from charges relating to drug trafficking and possession of a firearm. Mathis Blackburn was the third suspect in the beating of Maheux, who was serving time for a prison riot at Roberval Detention Facility which occurred last winter in the town of Roberval, Quebec. Blackburn was sentenced to a supplementary 11-months. William Patry, another one of the accused for the beating of Maheux, was in prison for a kidnapping which occurred in Charlevoix last April. This kidnapping was part of the ongoing BFM drug war.
Maheux had been beaten previously, he had also been assaulted by Yoan Therrien, another BFM associate in prison for hostage taking and assault. He had assaulted Maheux with the help of Amael Lebel, only three days after Maheux had entered prison. The assault took place on July 20th.
This should serve as a lesson. If you’re willing to do crime, you better be willing to do the time. One Person’s word to the police should not grant you a lighter sentence. It’s selfish. Why does one deserve less time for spilling the beans to police, throwing everyone they’ve ever worked with under the bus. No one is special enough to do this, no matter what your situation is, everyone’s got problems.
