Issaiah Clachar stabbing death leads to 2nd-degree murder charges against 2 men
Clachar, 17, stabbed to death on Sunday morning, another man suffered stab wounds but survived
Two men face charges of second-degree murder and attempted murder after Sunday morning stabbings on Jasmine Crescent in Gloucester.
Issaiah Clachar, 17, died after he was stabbed in an incident at about 12:15 a.m. in the 2000 block of Jasmine Crescent.
Keanu Croteau, 18, and Mohamad Hamade, 25, both of Ottawa, are charged with one count each of second-degree murder and attempted murder.
They appeared in an Ottawa courtroom via video link around noon Monday and were held until their next appearance Thursday afternoon.
Neither of them have a criminal record.
Lawyer: Croteau will defend himself
Two groups of young men between the apartment buildings at 2000 and 2020 Jasmine Cres. had started fighting and it "got out of hand quickly," said Staff. Sgt. Bruce Pirt of the Ottawa police major crime unit on Sunday.
Police said Monday they've determined the incident was not a random incident, but Croteau's defence lawyer Mark Ertel said he wasn't aware of any relation between his client and Clachar.
Some of Clachar's fellow students confirmed to the CBC that he was enrolled at Ottawa Technical Secondary School, and that he moved to the city from Cornwall, Ont in Dec. 2014.
Ertel said Croteau is a high school graduate who was working and trying to get into a post-secondary school in the area.
"He's an 18-year-old, just barely a man. These are obviously very troubling circumstances that he finds himself in," Ertel said.
"He's upset and nervous… but he has his chin up. He's going to face these charges and he's going to defend them."
Croteau had more than a dozen friends and family in the courtroom for his appearance.
The CBC's Andrew Foote said some of those friends and family covered their faces and appeared emotional when he came onto the screen.