Hockey

Guy Lafleur surrenders to Montreal police

Retired NHL superstar Guy Lafleur turned himself in to Montreal police Thursday, CBC News has learned.

Retired NHL superstar Guy Lafleur turned himself in to Montreal police and was released Thursday.

He is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 7.

Police issued an arrest warrant Wednesday for the hockey legend, for providing contradictory evidence on the witness stand at his son's bail hearings.

"First of all, he feels he didn't do anything wrong," said Jean-Pierre Rancourt, Lafleur's lawyer.

"And, secondly, the most important thing is the arrest warrant. We feel it wasn't necessary in this case."

Lafleur, 56, testified last September that his son, Mark, was abiding by a court-imposed curfew as he stayed with his parents in their Ile Bizard, Que., home.

But a month later, Lafleur testified before Superior Court Justice Carol Cohen that he knew of the 12:30 a.m. ET curfew, yet when Mark was on weekend leave from the Maison Exode halfway house, he twice drove his son to hotels to give him privacy with his teenage girlfriend.

"He respected it — except for twice — when he asked if he could go to a hotel," Lafleur testified. "I thought that, at 22, he had a right to some intimacy."

Cohen later revoked Mark's bail, noting in her ruling that Lafleur was aware his son was breaking the conditions of his bail, yet did nothing to stop him.

Son still in jail

Mark Lafleur, 23, faces more than 20 criminal charges, including sexually assaulting a minor, armed assault, uttering threats and forcible confinement between 2004 and 2007.

He remains in jail, pending a trial.

Guy Lafleur spent his first 14 NHL seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, then ended a three-year retirement to play three more seasons with the New York Rangers and Quebec Nordiques.

Drafted first overall by Montreal in 1971, he compiled 560 goals and 1,353 points in 1,127 NHL games before retiring for good in 1991.

With files from the Associated Press

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