| Marcel "Le Chinois" Salvail |
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| Marcel Salvail was born in the early 1940s and was known as "Le Chinois" (The Chinaman) in the underworld. Allegedly active in narcotics trafficking and extortion on the South Shore of Montreal, the CECO labelled him the "King of organized crime in Sorel" and summoned him to testify before their committee. By then, Salvail had decided that a change of scenery would suit him well and relocated down south, in Hollywood, Florida. Hollywood had become a focal point for French-Canadians living in South Florida, earning the area the nickname "Little Quebec." But following the law-abiding citizens to the southern state, was a core of Canadian criminals, including members of the Montreal Mafia and Dubois Gang. |
Salvail, a former boxer, emerged as one of the leaders of the Canadians in Florida. According to United States authorities, Salvail was the "head of the Dubois mob in Florida." Police believed that he had interests in the St. Jacques Café, the Starting Point Restaurant, and the Attache Motel. During surveillance on the St. Jacques Café, police noted the licence plate numbers of 60 vehicles belonging to clients of the establishment. An investigation revealed that 30% of the vehicles' owners had criminal records back in Canada. Salvail was a major contact for Canadian fugitives hiding in Florida. He provided Robert Tremblay with a car when the latter was on the run in Florida and, on one occasion, Salvail put up $20,000 bond for five Canadians that illegally entered the United States when they were arrested during a raid at the Starting Point Restaurant. A joint operation of the RCMP, DEA, and FBI arrested Salvail and dozens of others, including mobsters William Obront and Nick Cotroni, on July 21, 1983 and charged them with running a $50 million a year drug ring in Florida. The network, ran by Obront and Salvail, imported millions of phony quaaludes from Montreal into the United States, quenching 70% of the country's thirst for the drug, and also dealt in large quantities of cocaine. Salvail went on trial with his associate Laurent Parenteau, William Obront, and Obront's right-hand man Seymour Plasner. The four men faced a total of 28 drug related charges. Among the prosecution's key witnesses was Denys Theriault, a Canadian fugitive hiding out in Florida. Theriault, an admitted cocaine addict, testified that he bought 75,000 quaaludes from Salvail in April, 1983 and then resold the drugs to Allan Gilmore, who also cooperated with authorities. William Obront took the stand in his own defence on June 5, 1984. He denied knowing Salvail, saying that he had only met him once or twice, when he had brought his Lincoln to a garage Salvail owned to have it painted. An intelligence report released during the trial described Salvail as the "No. 3 drug trafficker in the world." Salvail's lawyer denied the accusation, describing the report as being "all false." Two days later, jury returned their verdicts. After six hours of deliberation, the group of four men and eight women found Marcel Salvail, William Obront, Seymour Plasner, and Laurent Parenteau guilty of all 28 drug related charges. As the four men were being escorted to a U.S. Marshall's van, the shackled Salvail grinned as photographers and cameramen filmed him. Salvail, who had strategically eluded the press throughout the trial, joked about the situation. "They've been trying to take my picture all this time," he said. "Now, isn't this a much prettier sight?" The group received their sentences on July 27, 1984. Salvail was sentenced to nine years in prison and fined $30,000. William Obront received twenty years, Seymour Plasner got ten years, and Laurent Parenteau was sentenced to six years. Salvail was expulsed from the United States upon the completion of his prison term and returned to Montreal. Salvail sued the Jean-Coutu Group, Canada's second largest pharmacy chain, for $991,000 in 1990. Salvail's jewellery distribution company, Créations L.S.G. Inc, signed a five year contract with Jean-Coutu in 1989 to have their products sold in the chain's stores. Then, on June 1, 1990, Jean-Coutu allegedly broke the contract and took the jewellery off their shelves. Salvail was arrested on March 11, 1994 for reportedly assaulting a client at the Montreal Casino. Salvail, described as a high roller at the gambling establishment, was entertaining a small group of people with a magic trick when another gambler interrupted, saying that he already knew the trick. An infuriated Salvail allegedly grabbed the man by the throat, lifted him off the floor, and shouted "Want me to make you disappear?" Police picked him up a short time later. |