A man who lived in a Longueuil motel was reportedly stabbed to death by his neighbor just hours before Christmas Eve.

On December 23 at around 9:10 p.m., Marc-André Guy, 48, was allegedly attacked with a knife while he was in a room at the Motel Saint-Hubert, located near Route 116.

He succumbed to his injuries a few hours later in hospital.

Police officers from the Longueuil Agglomeration Police Service (SPAL) quickly arrested Ronald Lamothe at the scene of the crime.

The 52-year-old was charged Saturday with second-degree murder and appeared by videoconference. He is still detained.

"It's not something that normally happens here. […] Of course it worries me, because what happened is really serious, ”said a receptionist at the establishment during the passage of the Journal on Monday.

Not a four star...

The victim and the accused had been living for several months at the Motel Saint-Hubert, which advertises rooms paid by the week or by the month on its sign visible from the highway, confirmed the employee.

According to a lady who lived there between 2018 and 2021, it would be "a problem place".

This former tenant, however, wanted to pay a last tribute to the victim, whom she considers a father.

"He was a man with a big heart, always there to help others [...]. It is thanks to him if today I have left this way of life and that I no longer consume, ”said the one who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

Many backgrounds

Lamothe has a long criminal history, particularly related to drugs.

In 2004, he was caught selling crack to an undercover agent outside a bar on Saint-Laurent Street in Montreal and was sentenced to five months in prison.

He has also been convicted several times of breach of order in recent years, including in 2020, where he was sentenced to four months behind bars.

In January 2021, a fire of suspicious origin had ravaged part of the complex. Nearly two years later, the rooms that had been affected are still boarded up.