Brossard, Que (Rajeev Sharma): New details have emerged in the case of a man and woman found dead inside a Brossard home earlier this week, revealing that the man had previously been accused of violently assaulting his wife and was once subject to strict court-ordered conditions that were later lifted.
Police say Marcos Amilcar Diaz Lopez, 56, and his wife, Sonia Maricela Gonzalez Vasquez, 54, were discovered dead in their residence on Bienvenue Avenue shortly after midnight on Monday. Officers were dispatched following a 911 call reporting an armed assault around 12:45 a.m. Both were found with stab wounds.
In a statement released Tuesday, Longueuil police said it appears “in all likelihood” that Gonzalez Vasquez was killed and Diaz Lopez died by suicide. The investigation remains ongoing.
Court records show Diaz Lopez had been charged with assaulting his wife twice in December 2024, including one incident involving a 30-centimetre knife that police described at the time as an attempted murder. The weapon, a sheath and a bloodied T-shirt with multiple cuts were seized from the home during that investigation.
Following his arrest on December 10, 2024, Diaz Lopez was released on bail nine days later under strict conditions. He was ordered to live separately, remain at least one kilometre away from Gonzalez Vasquez, wear an electronic tracking bracelet and undergo anger management therapy. However, he was charged again just a day later for allegedly breaching those conditions.
According to probation documents, the electronic bracelet later showed no violations over a two-month period, leading authorities to conclude that the victim was being adequately protected. In May 2025, all restrictions — including the tracking bracelet and no-contact order — were lifted. By December 2025, all charges against Diaz Lopez, including assault, assault with a weapon, threats and harassment, were dropped. The reasons behind the withdrawal of charges remain unclear.
Quebec’s public prosecution service said it is reviewing court recordings to determine why the case was abandoned.
Police confirmed that at the time of their deaths, the couple had resumed living together in the same home. While authorities have not officially classified Gonzalez Vasquez’s death as a homicide linked to intimate partner violence, Quebec Public Security Minister Ian Lafrenière referred to the case as a “femicide” at the National Assembly.
“So many measures were put in place, and yet this is the tragic outcome,” Lafrenière said, calling conjugal violence cases among the most complex crimes to prevent.
If confirmed as a case of conjugal violence, Gonzalez Vasquez would be the sixth such victim in Quebec this year. Advocacy groups say the case highlights systemic gaps in protecting victims, despite legal safeguards such as electronic monitoring.
Next week, more than 50 organizations that support victims of intimate partner violence are expected to protest outside the National Assembly, urging the provincial government to allocate more resources in the upcoming budget.
