Réal Simard was born on January 7, 1951, in Montreal, Quebec, into an abusive and unstable home. He grew up in a rowhouse on St. Timothée Street with an alcoholic father who regularly beat him, an environment that shaped his early life and pushed him toward crime. His uncle, Armand Courville, was a well-known associate of Montreal mob boss Vic Cotroni, and Simard idolized him from a young age. From early on, Simard aspired to join the Cotroni crime family.

His criminal career began with petty offenses but quickly escalated to professional bank robbery. He worked with childhood friend Raymond Martel until Martel was caught during a heist, leaving Simard to avoid arrest. Another partner, Jean-Paul Saint-Armand, was later arrested and turned informant, leading to Simard’s own conviction. He served six years in prison for bank robbery and other offenses, including extortion and illegal weapons possession.

While serving time, Simard met Frank Cotroni, acting boss of the Cotroni family during his brother Vic’s illness. Cotroni took a liking to him, offering guidance and telling him bank robbery was a dangerous and low-profit crime. Simard, emotionally needy and eager to feel important, began to see Cotroni as a father figure. Accepting a job as Cotroni’s chauffeur, Simard drew parallels to other mobsters who started in similar roles, like Al Capone. Despite being French-Canadian, he adopted the mannerisms of an Italian Mafioso, and through his loyalty and proximity, he entered deeper into the Cotroni organization.

Cotroni appointed Simard to manage Prestige Entertainment, a lucrative stripper agency, and involved him in various family matters, from enforcing domestic disputes to overseeing nightlife operations. Simard cultivated a stylish, designer-clad image, though many within the family distrusted non-Italian members, fearing they would break omertà under pressure. By 1980, Cotroni began grooming him as a hitman.

Simard’s first murder took place on January 18, 1980, when he was ordered to kill Michel "Fatso" Marion, a nightclub owner and hashish dealer accused of interfering with Cotroni’s rackets. Marion had ties to the late gangster Richard "Le Chat" Blass, an enemy of the Cotronis. In St. Adèle, Simard approached Marion while he was eating breakfast, shot him twice in the chest, and delivered a headshot as instructed. The act earned him Cotroni’s praise and cemented his place as a trusted enforcer.

Later that year, on December 13, 1980, Simard killed Nicholas Morello, shooting him in the back and head outside a bar in Saint-Leonard. On June 14, 1981, he murdered drug dealer Giuseppe Montegano at the Agrigento Social Club, despite Cotroni’s orders not to kill there. Montegano had quarreled with Francesco Cotroni Jr. over drug disputes and was suspected of being a police informant. When Montegano tried to flee, Simard shot him in the back. Cotroni accepted the breach, assuring him he would refine his methods.

On September 17, 1982, Simard assassinated Michel Pozza, a former Cotroni financial associate who had defected to the rival Rizzuto crime family. Using a .22-calibre pistol, he shot Pozza six times outside his Mont-Rolland home.

By mid-1983, Cotroni sent Simard to Toronto to establish operations and work with Ontario mob boss Johnny Papalia. Simard facilitated the introduction of Quebec strippers and cocaine into the Toronto underworld, expanding Cotroni’s reach. However, his cocaine use and impulsive behavior led to violence. On November 29, 1983, believing two Montreal dealers—Mario Héroux and Robert Hétu—were stealing from the family, Simard and associate Richard Clément attacked them in their Seaway Motel room. Héroux was killed, but Hétu survived despite being shot twice in the face and later identified Simard to police.

Simard fled to Montreal but was arrested shortly afterward. Facing serious charges, he became a Crown informant, leading to Operation Si-Co in 1987. His testimony resulted in manslaughter convictions for Frank Cotroni, Francesco Cotroni Jr., and two associates in connection with the Montegano killing. In return, Simard received favorable prison conditions.

Released on parole in 1990, he entered witness protection but later became involved in welfare fraud, leading to repeated parole violations and a 1999 escape. He was discovered in 2004 working under a false identity as a security guard at a Montreal private school. His parole has been consistently denied since, and as of the last available reports, he remains incarcerated.