Authorities have just ordered the closure of a Laval bar frequented by members of organized crime, where an illegal firearm and narcotics were found.
The Badabing, on the boulevard de la Concorde, was also the scene of sexual assaults against a waitress.
The bar was bought in July 2021 by a man named Alex Melkart. The same month, the Laval police noted that “the place is full of customers linked to organized crime, including the entourage of Mr. [Davide] Barberio”, a heavyweight in the Montreal mafia.
Two months later, during a routine visit, the police discovered “two large bags filled with narcotics and a prohibited weapon” in an outbuilding of the establishment. The weapon is so big that it could be used to “kill an elephant”, testified the investigator François Vigeant, of the Service de police de Laval (SPL).
It was too much for the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (RACJ).
“The upsurge in gun violence in the Montreal area rightly raises public fear,” the court said in its ruling last month. “The Tribunal cannot tolerate a liquor licensee keeping a firearm in her establishment and thus participating in this violence and this climate of fear. »
“The licensee clearly does not have the capacity required to carry out with competence and integrity the activities related to the exploitation of its license”, concluded the RACJ.
The Badabing never responded to the calls from the Régie and therefore did not make its point of view heard. La Presse was also unable to reach its owner.
In addition, the RACJ decision indicates that one of the Badabing waitresses filed a complaint with the police in connection with two sexual assaults of which she was allegedly the subject. His complaint targets Daniel Guarna, an individual linked to organized crime and whom his boss describes as a new manager.
The complainant was also quickly dismissed, directly by Mr. Guarna.
A few days later, at a party where they meet by chance, Mr. Guarna “goes to meet the ex-employee and, showing her the contents of his bag in which there is a black pistol, he tells her : ‟Pay attention to what you say”, relates the decision of the RACJ.
Accused of sexual assault, Mr. Guarna was ultimately convicted of assault in that case. “During a search of his residence, the police discovered two weapons, narcotics and cash,” added the RACJ. “Mr. Alex Melkart and Mr. Guarna are often armed when present at the facility,” according to the complainant.
The Badabing was the name of the bar that served as the headquarters of the local mafia in the cult television series The Sopranos, which aired from 1999 to 2007.
