Reputed mafia boss Salvatore Montagna, 40, was found murdered on Thursday outside of Montreal. His body was found in the Assomption River in Charlemagne, northeast of the city.

It is believed that Montagna was shot and killed after 10 a.m. that morning on the shore of Ile Vaudry, a small island south of Charlemagne and next to Repentigny. Witnesses told authorities they heard gunshots in the region early Thursday.

Surete du Quebec Sgt. Benoit Richard on Thursday told the Montreal Gazette that it was too early to say if the facts are that Montagna was shot in Charlemagne and then crossed the river to Ile Vaudry in an attempt to elude the shooter.

Salvatore Montagna was born in Montreal but grew up in Sicily. He was a dual citizen of Canada and Italy and was reportedly deported from the U.S. in 2009.

According to the Montreal Gazette, police have speculated for months that Montagna possibly returned to Montreal to fill a void in the city's Mafia. This void was created by a series of arrests followed by kidnappings and murders, the paper reported.

Montagna was married and fathered three daughters.

Police sources told Canadian media that Montagna was suspected of shaking down several Montreal-area construction companies for five per cent of their profits. Montagna is accused of similar actions in New York while briefly heading the Bonanno crime family before his deportation to Canada.

He was known among associates in the Bonanno family as Sal the Ironworker because he owned a company based in Brooklyn, New York called Matrix Steel Inc.

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