A 13-year-old boy got a bit of a fright during an incident in the men's washroom at the Pincourt mall over the weekend that prompted a complaint to police by his father that led to the arrest of an 87-year-old man in connection with breach of conditions.
Michel Lalonde's son was in the washroom at the Faubourg de l'île Sunday when...
"A hand came from out, from underneath of the stall. My son was not sure if it was a motioning or a grabbing motion because as soon as he saw the hand, he just bolted out of there," said Lalonde who contacted yourstory@cjad.com.
"My son looked a little freaked out."
Lalonde said he went to confront the man who was still in stall and who didn't come out or say anything. Lalonde called police who got him out.
Police said the man was on probation and faces a charge of violating his conditions - he was not supposed to be at the mall.
Police can't say what the probation was for. The man remains free pending his court date.
Police said they have no reason to believe that the man committed a crime on the premises.
That doesn't reassure Lalonde who said that security should be stepped up in a mall where there are plenty of children, what with two sports schools there and a playpark on the way.
"For me, putting up cameras in the hallway is not everything you can do," said Lalonde.
CJAD 800 News has not received comment yet from mall management.
For now, Lalonde said he just wants the community to be aware.
"Even if they're 13, 14, just to tell them to be careful. To always be careful in public places, because even if it's down the street from your house or it's downtown, there are some strange characters out there and they don't always mean well," said Lalonde.
"If it was a younger child and not a 13-year-old, I don't know what could have happened and that's what scares me."