Toronto police said within an hour of the shooting they had four suspects in custody. One suspect was shot in an interaction with police and has a non-life threatening injury. At least one of the victims was a woman, shot through the leg.
All of the victims were said to be between the ages of 20 and 40. The victim with life-threatening injuries was administered CPR on scene, and is likely the person an early report said had no vital signs when found.
There was a community response unit of police near the scene conducting an outreach program and those officers were able to quickly respond to the shooting. One of the officers, Sgt. Steve Hicks, told the Toronto Star that the police knew the victims and had previously “dealt with them a few times.”
Police are not yet clear on what prompted the violence or how many persons fired weapons, or if any of the victims took part in the shooting. The shootout took place near to a park and across from the Brooksview Middle School on Jane St. and down from the Driftwood Community Centre.
The area, in the process of being re-branded as ‘University Heights’ has a diversified ethnic mix, many low-income families and a large amount of public housing. It has been the scene of many prior shootings.
The Special Investigations Unit is taking part in the investigation.
