| James McDonald |
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| James McDonald, born in the early to mid 1940s, reportedly stood over six-feet tall and weighed over 220lbs, and was described as a “specialist in armed robberies” by the Allo Police crime tabloid. He was close to several West End Gang figures, including Eric McNally. McDonald, who was described as an enforcer, was questioned by police in several underworld “settling of accounts” in the late 1960s. Among them, according to news reports, were the deaths of James Alexander Fryer and Russell Howie, as well as the two attempted murders of Charles Gallinger. All three men reportedly had linked to the West End Gang. |
| On April, 1968, McDonald was arrested for aggravated robbery. He was also suspected in a truck hijacking of $135,000 worth of cigarettes, according to a La Presse article. McDonald, who lived in Verdun, was arrested after a fight in the Copacabana club on St-Catherine Street late March 15, 1969. He was kept in jail overnight and released the next morning. That night, he went into the Cat’s Den Lounge on Guy Street. Around 11:45 p.m., two hoods entered brandishing a machine gun and revolver. They walked over to McDonald’s table and opened fire. A total of 17 bullets were discharged, at least ten of which tore into McDonald’s body. Two employees and a client were also injured. According to one news report, a witness described one of the suspects as being about “six-feet tall, blonde, wearing a long coat with a hood.” At the time of his death, McDonald was awaiting trial for the alleged theft of a truck containing $35,000 worth of merchandise from the Port of Montreal. McDonald’s murder was among about a dozen West End Gang associated casualties in 1968 and 1969. Many of those killed apparently knew one another, and were described in news accounts as being involved in armed robberies. |