A man convicted earlier this year of first-degree murder in the 2000 slaying of a Quebec college student has pleaded guilty in a second cold case.
Marc-André Grenon pleaded guilty Friday to attempting to murder a woman who was found beaten and left for dead in Quebec City in July 2000, months after police found a Gaylene Potvin Located about 180 km north.
Prosecutor Pierre-Alexandre Bernard said outside court that Grenon pleaded guilty to the second cold case because of “strong and compelling evidence” against him, including his DNA found at the crime scene.
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In February, a jury found Grenon guilty of sexually assaulting and killing 19-year-old Potvin after he broke into her apartment in Saguenay, Quebec, while she slept.
Police narrowed down the suspects 22 years after both crimes occurred when a project tracing the Y chromosome (passed down from father to son) revealed that previously unidentified DNA left behind by Potvin's killer was linked to the last name Grenon.
Grenon was sentenced to 15 years in prison, to be served concurrently with his 25-year sentence for the Potvin murder, Bernard said.
Grenon's attorneys have dropped their appeal of his first-degree murder conviction, prosecutors said.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
