Maurice Boucher was born on June 21, 1953, in Causapscal, Quebec, Canada. When he was just two years old, his family moved to the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve area of inner-city Montreal. His childhood was marked by poverty, growing up with seven siblings in a difficult environment. His father was a construction worker but struggled with alcoholism, leading him to frequently abuse his wife and children. In contrast, Boucher’s mother was seen as a source of love and support during his early years. His father was known to be very strict, imposing harsh discipline on his children, and did not tolerate any disobedience.

Boucher's early environment was filled with violence, as the construction industry where his father worked was influenced by the Mafia. This societal landscape made corruption and brutality seem normal. Boucher performed poorly in school, often described as indifferent in his studies. He eventually dropped out in ninth grade to take on various small jobs. When he was 19, he committed his first criminal act by stealing $200 from a small shop.

Although Boucher received a certificate in construction in July 1974, he was let go from his job after only a week due to his heavy drinking and drug use. Struggling to make ends meet and support his growing addiction, he turned to crime, arresting for multiple break-ins in late 1974. His first recorded adult crime occurred on the night of November 5, 1974, when he attempted to steal cartons of cigarettes from a grocery store but was caught by police.

Throughout this time, Boucher struggled with various substance abuses, including alcohol, marijuana, and other hard drugs. By early 1975, he had expressed a desire to follow his father into the construction trade, but the recession made jobs scarce. A psychologist later observed that Boucher lacked emotional empathy and viewed violence as acceptable due to his abusive upbringing. His criminal endeavors continued to escalate, as he faced numerous arrests and convictions over the following years for various crimes.

In the early 1980s, Boucher became involved with a white supremacist motorcycle gang known as the SS in Montreal. His friendship with fellow gang members set the stage for his later rise in the Hells Angels. During this time, he began to display a leadership quality that would characterize his future in organized crime. 

In September 1984, Maurice Boucher held a gun to a 16-year-old girl’s head and threatened to kill her if she did not have sex with him. This led to his conviction for rape. After serving his time in prison, Boucher illegally collected unemployment insurance until a clerk noticed the checks were going to his prison address. Upon his release in January 1986, Boucher joined the Hells Angels in Montreal and quickly scaled the ranks, becoming a “full patch” member on May 1, 1987.

Boucher is widely believed to have murdered Martin Huneault, a leader of a rival gang, just before becoming a member of the Hells Angels. Huneault was shot while watching a hockey game in a bar. The witnesses did not testify against Boucher, and after this murder, the Death Riders gang was forced under Hells Angels control, giving Boucher significant influence over the drug trade in Laval.

By the late 1980s, Boucher was a significant player in the Quebec organized crime scene. He was involved in various criminal activities like drug trafficking and loan sharking. The Hells Angels expanded their operations in the 1990s under his leadership, notably founding the Rockers, a puppet club that carried out many violent actions during the Quebec Biker War.

In June 1997, Boucher ordered the murders of two Quebec prison guards, Dianne Lavigne and Pierre Rondeau, as a direct attack against the justice system, intending to instill fear and prevent potential informants. After a series of violent conflicts and the police building a case against him, he was arrested in late 1997.

Boucher was initially acquitted of the guards' murders in 1998. However, due to evidence of jury tampering and witness intimidation, he was retried and found guilty in May 2002. This time, he was sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of parole for 25 years.

While in prison, Boucher survived several assassination attempts and continued to manage criminal operations from behind bars. In 2015, he and his daughter were charged with conspiracy to commit murder in connection to a plot to kill a rival gangster. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in 2018.

Boucher died on July 10, 2022, while receiving medical care for throat cancer, after years of infamy and violent crime in Quebec.