Susan Clairmont: It was meant to be a safe haven. Instead, it was the place Michel Pilon was strangled and hog-tied

It was meant to be a safe haven for the neediest.

Those with mental-health issues and addictions. People difficult to house.

The supportive housing unit on Melvin Avenue opened a few months earlier. Operated by Indwell, an affordable housing organization, it offered dinner to every resident and a team that included social workers, a nurse, addiction specialists and housing experts.

Michel Pilon was among the first tenants.

Michel, 53, was a small man, standing five-foot-four and weighing 97 pounds. He used a wheelchair.

He was a sociable guy who kept his third-floor apartment tidy, and collected bottles for refunds.

He was also addicted to crystal meth and crack cocaine.

Early on Nov. 30, 2018, Michel was found strangled and hog-tied in his bathroom. In the 24 hours before that, he was alone in his unit with George Opassinis, who had crashed at his place for weeks.

Opassinis is on trial for second-degree murder.

The Crown suggests Michel was preparing to kick Opassinis out.

The defence points to an alternate suspect collecting a drug debt.

Monday, the final Crown witnesses painted a picture of life inside the building.

Nearly all residents and visitors who have testified admitted to being drug users and, in some cases, dealers.

Security video from the hallway in the 28 hours leading to Michel being found shows people going between units at all hours.

Suzanne Maye knocked on Michel's door asking for a morphine pill.

He didn't give it to me because he only had one left," she testified. There was a homeless guy there. I think, George."

Maye told the jury she was high that night and her memory is hazy.

Crystal meth. I was up for two or three days ... I don't remember yesterday, never mind three years ago."

Pauline Buckingdale - who testified she doesn't use drugs or alcohol - was awakened around 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 29.

I got woken up to the sound of someone saying Ow. What the f---, man.'"

She heard a domestic dispute, where it sounds like things are being thrown."

Video shows her knocking at Michel's apartment at 8:09 a.m. There was no answer. She testified she heard the shower running.

At 1 p.m., Indwell support workers Marita Boekestyn and Zachary Rowley did their weekly apartment checks" to inspect for pests and ensure residents' well-being.

Boekestyn couldn't recall if Michel's door was answered or a key was used. But the man inside was not Michel.

It was another individual who I hadn't seen before. We asked where Michel was and he said he was out. I felt uneasy about him and then we left."

She could not see into the bathroom.

Rowley remembered opening the door with the master key.

The apartment didn't look like it normally did. It was a huge mess ... I saw a man standing in the doorway to the bathroom. I didn't recognize him. He looked dishevelled. He had no shirt and hospital pants that were barely hanging on."

The bathroom's sliding door was open a crack, but Rowley couldn't see in.

The man said Michel was at the AIDs Network.

Boekestyn and Rowley left and continued with their checks.

Early on the 30th, David Herak - a drug dealer then - knocked on Michel's door while Beverly Staines watched. Opassinis let him in.

Staines, high on crack and owed $20 by Michel, wanted in too.

I tried to squeeze in, but I got shoved out."

Herak came out barely a minute later. He had seen Michel and knew he was dead.

Susan Clairmont is a justice columnist at The Spectator. sclairmont@thespec.com