MONTREAL — A 15-year-old teen who was shot and killed by police on Montreal’s South Shore was laid to rest Thursday as tension remained palpable from the weekend officer-involved killing.
Nooran Rezayi’s funeral Thursday at a Brossard, Que., mosque was attended by hundreds. The 15-year-old boy was shot dead by police after officers responded to a 911 call about a group of armed young people in a public place in Longueuil.
A march and vigil is planned for Saturday afternoon in the quiet residential neighbourhood where Rezayi was killed, roughly 10 minutes from his family home.
The vigil is to honour the memory of Rezayi and demand justice, organizers said. It will be held at Parc des Mille Fleurs in Longueuil’s St-Hubert borough.
The police watchdog investigating the shooting says investigators seized a baseball bat, ski masks and a backpack after the shooting. The watchdog also said that the only firearm seized from the scene came from the officer who killed Rezayi.
Meanwhile, Longueuil police announced Thursday that they’d arrested a teenager who allegedly threatened officers in the wake of the police shooting
The arrest of the suspect, also 15 years old, was just hours after police said they had opened an investigation into threats against the force following the killing of Rezayi.
The police force also said that at least one officer has been granted special protection due to online threats made against him and his family. Longueuil police also said they had increased security measures to protect other officers.
“The threats were reportedly made following the events of Sunday, September 21st,” police said in a terse statement Thursday. “The youth was released with the usual conditions.”
Police called for calm amid a tense situation, saying any form of threat or intimidation against its members is taken very seriously.
“In the current context, we appeal for calm and collective responsibility,” Longueuil police said in a statement, adding the province’s police watchdog was continuing its investigation and urged the public to let due process happen.
The Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes had raised concerns this week that certain people were trying to carry out parallel investigations and speaking to witnesses.
A Montreal-based civil liberties organization, the Ligue des droits et libertés, suggested people are trying to get more information because the watchdog typically doesn’t share detailed findings of its investigations.
The group has previously criticized the watchdog for being too close to police and secretive.
“In this context, how can we be surprised that people are currently trying to shed light on the police intervention during which Nooran Rezayi was shot dead?,” the advocacy group said.
“How can we be surprised that the victims’ families and a growing part of the population have no confidence in the investigations conducted by the BEI?”
The BEI’s director, Brigitte Bishop, insisted on Tuesday her organization’s mission is to shed light on what happened during an exceptional news conference by the oversight organization.
The Montreal police force is conducting a parallel criminal investigation into the shooting.
The family’s lawyer said they have many unanswered questions, including why their son wound up dead and why it took police so long to inform them of his injuries.
Rezayi died in hospital but the family only found out nearly five hours after the shooting, according to lawyer Fernando Belton.
Despite the tensions, organizers called on participants to remain calm, respectful and peaceful on Saturday afternoon.
“It’s not for us, but for Nooran and his family,” the invitation read.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2025.
Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press
