2 people arrested in Old Montreal fire that killed mom, daughter

Two people have been arrested in connection to a fire in Old Montreal that killed a mother and her daughter earlier this month.

Montreal police announced the arrests Friday, a week after the Oct. 4 blaze ripped through a century-old building that left 43-year-old French national Léonor Geraudie and her seven-year-old daughter Vérane Reynaud Geraudie dead.

Police said there were 23 other people who were believed to be in the building on Notre-Dame Street East when the flames broke. They all made it out.

Police are set to hold an update on the investigation at 3 p.m. Eastern.

Quebec’s chief coroner announced an inquiry Tuesday, saying it comes following a request by Quebec’s Public Security Minister François Bonnardel.

City property records show the building was built in 1923, and belongs to Émile Benamor, — the same owner of a heritage building nearby on Place D’Youville that went up in flames last March. The Place D’Youville fire killed seven people.

Coroner Géhane Kamel will lead both inquests. The coroner’s office said given the two inquiries will focus on similar facts, Kamel could eventually combine them.

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The coroner’s office said given the two inquiries will focus on similar facts, Kamel could eventually combine them.

Multiple lawsuits were filed in the aftermath of the Place D’Youville fire, and the coroner’s inquest is on hold until the conclusion of the police investigation and any potential criminal trials.

Anyone with information about the deadly Oct. 4 blaze is asked to contact police. They can also do so anonymously and confidentially through Info-Crime Montreal at 514-393-1133 or on the website.

— with files from The Canadian Press