Quebecer who killed spouse, 2 children to remain in men’s prison despite identifying as woman

Mohamad Al Ballouz was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder. (Court evidence)

A Quebecer who killed her spouse and two children will remain in a men’s prison, Canadian authorities said Wednesday.

Mohamad Al Ballouz, who now identifies as a woman, was sentenced last December after being convicted of second-degree murder in the stabbing death of Synthia Bussières, 38, and of first-degree murder in the deaths of their two kids, aged five and two. The killings happened in September of 2022 in Brossard, on Montreal’s South Shore.

During the trial, Ballouz had been held at Leclerc Institution, a women’s detention centre in Laval, Que., and was later transferred to a men’s prison. The 38-year-old later requested to serve the sentence in a women’s prison.

On Wednesday, the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) confirmed in a statement to CTV News that Ballouz, after an assessment, “will be incarcerated in a men’s institution.”

A CSC spokesperson wrote in a statement that each accommodation request is assessed on a case-by-case basis and requires an examination of the inmate’s needs and risks.

“When there are overriding health and safety concerns, the request is denied and alternatives are put in place to meet the offender’s gender‑related needs at the institution where they are incarcerated,” the statement reads.

Quebec Superior Court Justice Eric Downs described Ballouz as “sadistic” and the killing of Bussières as a “femicide” when he handed down a sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

“The evidence shows that the accused shows no remorse, no empathy,” the judge said in his decision.