Nooran Rezayi

Nooran Rezayi died on September 21, 2025, in a residential neighbourhood in the Saint-Hubert borough of Longueuil, Quebec, after being shot by a police officer. Longueuil police had been dispatched to the area following a 911 call reporting a group of masked and armed young people. Witness accounts and surveillance video presented later by the family's lawyers indicated that Nooran remained in place and raised his hands as instructed while other members of his group ran off, and that an officer fired two shots into his torso within about ten seconds of the police cruiser stopping. He was taken to hospital, where his death was confirmed.

Quebec's Bureau des enquetes independantes (BEI), the province's independent police oversight body, opened an investigation into the shooting, as required whenever a person dies during a police operation. The BEI later confirmed that the only firearm found at the scene belonged to the officer who fired the shots, and that no gun was recovered from Nooran, though a baseball bat was found nearby. His family said he had been carrying only a backpack of school books.

The shooting was publicly confirmed by Quebec media within hours, and the BEI announced its investigation the same week. Nooran's death immediately drew an outpouring of grief and anger from his community. Classmates, neighbours, and civil rights advocates described him as a gentle teenager who had not been violent, and the case quickly became a flashpoint in the wider debate over policing and the use of lethal force against young people in Quebec.

In the days that followed, hundreds of people gathered for a vigil and a march that began near his school and ended outside the Longueuil police headquarters, calling for accountability and for the mandatory use of police body cameras. A memorial was set up at the site of the shooting, and further gatherings, including a one month remembrance and a first anniversary vigil in September 2026, were held to keep attention on the case. Nooran's family has also pursued a civil lawsuit against the City of Longueuil and the officers involved, seeking over 2.2 million dollars in damages, while Quebec's minister of public security ordered a separate administrative inquiry into the Longueuil police force's conduct following the shooting. As of the first anniversary of his death, the officer who fired the fatal shots had not been publicly identified, and prosecutors had not announced whether criminal charges would be filed.

Nooran was born in Quebec to Afghan-origin parents and grew up in Longueuil's Saint-Hubert borough. He was the middle child, with an older sister and a much younger brother. Friends from Andre-Laurendeau Secondary School remembered a generous, funny classmate who liked soccer and hanging out outdoors.

On 21 September 2025, Longueuil police answered a 911 call about reportedly armed youths. Within seconds of arriving, an officer fatally shot Nooran. The BEI found no firearm on him; only the officer's gun was recovered as a firearm at the scene. His family said he had been carrying a backpack of school books.

The BEI investigated the shooting and sent its file to prosecutors. It also faulted Longueuil police for delayed notification. SPVM charged 11 youths over preceding events; those charges were later stayed. The family and other teens filed multimillion-dollar civil suits. An administrative inquiry examined the force's handling of the aftermath.

Vigils and marches filled the year after his death. On the first anniversary, organizers planned a commemorative vigil outside a Longueuil police station to remember Nooran and keep pressure on unanswered questions about the shooting.