Former Skip the Dishes driver found guilty of stabbing man inside Vanier Burger King

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A former Skip the Dishes courier has been found guilty of stabbing a Burger King customer in Vanier who was “hungry and unhappy” after the driver apparently skipped the line.

The former driver, J.P. Dominic Mignac, was convicted last week of assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and aggravated assault after the judge rejected his claims of self-defence.

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Mignac was initially charged with attempted murder, though he was acquitted of that charge in the Aug. 13 ruling from Superior Court Justice Adriana Doyle.

He was also found guilty of resisting the police officers who arrived at the Burger King at 199 Montreal Rd. to arrest him.

A fight broke out between Mignac and another customer inside the Burger King on the night of March 10, 2022, according to the judge’s summary of the facts.

The victim, identified in court documents as Jason Galarneau, was waiting in line to place an order at the Vanier fast food restaurant when Mignac walked in with his Skip the Dishes delivery bag.

Mignac went to a separate counter, where he picked up the delivery order, then placed a separate order for himself.

Galarneau was upset, according to the judge’s summary, and could be seen on security video footage “fidgeting and pacing back and forth” and looking in Mignac’s direction prior to the fistfight.

He testified at Mignac’s preliminary inquiry, but Galarneau could not be found when it came time for the criminal trial, which was held over five days in June.

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According to his testimony at the preliminary inquiry, Galarneau told the cashier he “wasn’t havin’ it.”

He said there was “no way this guy’s getting personal food ahead of me.”

Galarneau was in “fight mode” as the two exchanged heated words before a “scuffle” broke out at the restaurant counter, according to the judge’s summary.

They exchanged punches, with both men striking the other in the head as the fight spilled over to the restaurant benches and tables.

The fight ended with Galarneau, the larger of the two men, on top of Mignac as they continued to exchange words.

Mignac went back to the counter and Galarneau walked away, put on his coat and picked up a chocolate bar, a bag and a phone that had fallen to the floor.

Galarneau was walking toward the restaurant’s side exit door, facing Hannah Street — still exchanging words with Mignac — when Mignac followed him to the door and pulled out a knife.

Galarneau told court that he heard Mignac say, “I’m gonna kill you.”

Mignac tackled the larger man from behind and started stabbing him.

The victim testified that he thought there were about 30 attempts to stab him in the throat before the attack ended with Galarneau wrapping his legs around Mignac to neutralize him.

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The presiding judge, however, found there were issues of “credibility and reliability” with the victim’s testimony.

In her decision, Doyle wrote that she found Galarneau “combative” with Mignac’s defence lawyer, Mellington Godoy, during the preliminary inquiry.

He called the defence “a liar,” and during cross-examination, Galarneau “laughed and appeared to find the proceeding amusing.”

Galarneau “attempted to minimize his role in the scuffle,” Doyle wrote, and “exaggerated the accused’s aggression.”

His claim that Mignac attempted to stab him 30 times was not supported by video evidence, which showed “at most… half a dozen stabs.”

Galarneau suffered two stab wounds to his thigh and one to each hand. He was in stable condition when he was treated in hospital and did not require a transfer to the trauma ward.

Galarneau showed his frustrations and was “hostile” at times, called the court process “ridiculous” and “a farce” and stated his desire to get up and leave the courtroom.

He could not be located after the inquiry and was not served with a summons to testify at Mignac’s trial, according to the judge’s summary.

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The video surveillance footage does not contain audio and there was little evidence of the actual words that were exchanged between the two.

One witness testified she saw the aftermath of the stabbing and heard Mignac say: “You’re going to f—die” to the victim.

Another witness, an Uber driver who was in his car on Hannah Street at the time, saw the stabbing but didn’t hear any words exchanged between the two men.

Mignac’s lawyer claimed the stabbing was in self-defence after Mignac felt threatened by the words Galarneau continued to speak as he was walking out of the Burger King.

The judge found there was “no air of reality” to the claim of self-defence.

“The victim could have used threatening language to the accused, but the evidence confirms that (Galarneau) was walking away,” Doyle wrote in her ruling. “Moving towards the victim when the scuffle is over and the victim is leaving the restaurant does not require the accused to defend himself or protect himself from the use of force.”

This wasn’t the first time the Burger King at 199 Montreal Rd. has turned into a crime scene.

Former Coun. Mathieu Fleury singled out the location following a shooting inside the restaurant in January 2019 and said he had fielded numerous complaints from the community.

Mignac is scheduled to return to court for a sentencing hearing in October.

ahelmer@postmedia.com

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