A Montreal resident serving time for his role in an attempt to murder an alleged influential member of the Montreal Mafia recently told prison authorities he has no concerns despite having been informed his life appears to be in danger.
The details of Kevin Rochebrun’s lack of worry about his safety are contained in a recent decision made by the Parole Board of Canada to deny him any form of release while he continues to serve a three-year prison term he received last year. He pleaded guilty to possessing firearms discovered by the Montreal police during their investigation of the attempted murder of Marco Pizzi.
On Aug. 8, 2016, Pizzi was driving along Grande-Allée Ave., near Prince-Albert St., when his vehicle was struck from behind by a BMW. When Pizzi got out of his vehicle to inspect the damage, two men carrying firearms jumped out of the BMW and chased him as he ran away. Pizzi, now 48, escaped by running through a nearby park where many children attending a daycamp were playing. Later that same day, the Montreal police traced the BMW to Rochebrun, a man with alleged ties to a Montreal street gang, and placed him under surveillance before moving in to search the vehicle. Rochebrun, 27, is believed to have been behind the wheel of the BMW when it rammed into Pizzi’s vehicle.
According to a written summary of the parole board’s recent decision, Rochebrun was advised, on July 24, 2017, that his safety “might be compromised in connection with your implication in a failed attempted murder of an influential organized crime figure, and that in the case of a release, it would be necessary to take into consideration the possible threat to your security.” The potential risk was re-evaluated again in May and authorities determined that Rochebrun’s life might still be in danger.
During Rochebrun’s hearing, parole board members were informed that he is “not preoccupied by this information.”
The summary reveals new details about the investigation that followed the attempt on Pizzi’s life. The Montreal police quickly locked on to Rochebrun as a suspect and he was under police surveillance that same day as he left his home in the Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles borough holding a bag and a pair of running shoes in his hands. He jumped into a car driven by a friend, and police watched as the two men drove to up to a garbage container into which Rochebrun tossed an empty gas can, a mask, jeans and a black sweatshirt. The pair then drove to a second container into which Rochebrun tossed the pair of sneakers.
The police found DNA on a second gas container inside the BMW that was later matched to Rochebrun’s DNA. When he was placed under arrest, Rochebrun was found to be carrying the key to a vehicle, registered in Ontario. It was searched by police, who found an automatic firearm equipped with a silencer, a sawed-off shotgun, a revolver and a Molotov cocktail inside.
Rochebrun, the only person charged in connection with the attempt on Pizzi’s life, was charged with assault with a weapon, but that accusation was stayed when he pleaded guilty to five charges related to the firearms.
During his parole hearing, Rochebrun denied having ties to a street gang. But he admitted he was a close friend of a man described by authorities as a “rising star in the Mafia.” It is an apparent reference to Marco Claudio Campellone, 24, a drug dealer who was killed in front of his family’s home in Rivière-des-Prairies on Sept. 18, 2015. Rochebrun also told the board he was attracted to the lifestyle of a drug dealer because he couldn’t see himself working a regular job for minimum wage.
The parole board denied Rochebrun both day and full parole after determining that any work he had done toward rehabilitation was superficial at best, as he fails to see how his choice in associates contributed to his crimes.
The board will review its decision in six months.