Canada’s most wanted fugitive is finally behind bars — and it happened all the way across the Atlantic.
After more than 600 days on the run, 28-year-old Dave “Pik” Turmel was arrested in Rome on Thursday morning, ending a sprawling international manhunt that had spanned continents for nearly two years.
Turmel had been wanted by Quebec City police since July 2023 on multiple charges including substance trafficking, conspiracy and assault with a weapon.
According to the Bolo Program — a national hub that regularly publishes and updates Canada’s most wanted list — the Quebec City native is the presumed leader of the Blood Family Mafia (BFM), a violent gang that La Press reports has been locked in a brutal turf war with the Hells Angels over control of Quebec’s drug trade for the last three years.
“This conflict has been marked by sordid crimes such as murder and the use of the most barbaric methods of intimidation, including torture sessions and limb amputations, some of which have been broadcast on social media networks,” reads Turmel’s Bolo Program profile.
The search for Turmel went global after investigators believed he’d fled Canada with the help of accomplices and possibly fake identities. INTERPOL even issued a Red Notice — essentially a worldwide request for law enforcement to track and arrest him.
“Investigators have reasons to believe he may have fled Canada and may have since travelled to several countries,” reads his Bolo Program page. “He is receiving assistance from some individuals and may be using fake identities so he could be anywhere in the world.”
At the time of his capture, he was hiding out in an apartment in Italy’s capital, a source told La Presse.
In the latest release of the Bolo Program’s most wanted list in December, Turmel was ranked as the number one fugitive in the Canada, with an “unprecedented” reward of up to $250,000 offered for tips leading to his arrest.
“Dave Turmel and BFM are willing to do anything to take control of drug trafficking, not only in Quebec City, but throughout eastern Quebec,” warned Quebec City Police Chief Denis Turcotte at the time.
Turmel’s alleged right-hand man, Roobens Denis, was previously arrested in Portugal, but another associate, All Boivin — the Bolo Program’s current number two — remains at large, also with a $250,000 bounty on his head.
Authorities haven’t said whether the reward for Turmel’s arrest will be paid out or revealed more about the circumstances.
