Now that he has been arrested, Ottawa will apply to have him extradited from Germany. If Magnotta contests the extradition request, it could be months before he is back in Montreal, said René Verret, a spokesperson for the directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales in Quebec City. “If he doesn’t contest, it could be very quick, a few days or a few weeks,” Verret said.
If Magnotta eventually pleads not guilty to first-degree murder, he will face a trial by judge and jury at the courthouse in Old Montreal.
Magnotta’s trial could be held in Room 5.15, which can accommodate a large number of media and members of the public. The room was used to hold the inquest into the death of teenager Fredy Villanueva.
The judge in the case could also hold the trial in a smaller courtroom and allow the many journalists expected to attend to have access to the proceedings via a video link, said a Quebec justice official, who spoke only on the condition that his name not be published.
