Six people are dead after a gunman’s bloody rampage at a Toronto area condo, including the suspect who was killed by police in a shocking explosion of violence that stunned residents of a city known for its safety.
Details are still murky as authorities investigate the incident which occurred on Sunday night at a condo tower in Vaughan, a suburb around 20 miles north of downtown Toronto and the home of Canada’s Wonderland, a sprawling theme park and tourist attraction.
Police responded to what was described as a “horrendous scene” that occurred at around 7:20 p.m. at the building located at 9235 Jane Street near Rutherford Road where they confronted the alleged shooter who was taken out during an “interaction” with law enforcement.
In addition to the suspect, the carnage included five who were gunned down in cold blood, a seventh victim was taken to a local hospital and was expected to survive.
(Video: CP24)
“Horrendous scene,” said York Regional Police Chief Jim MacSween. “Six deceased. One of them is the subject. The other five are victims.”
He also expressed condolences to the families of the victims and said that there was no further threat to the community after the gunman was neutralized by police.
“We’re in the process right now of doing notifications to those families, so at this point, I can’t share any information on the victims or the subject,” Chief MacSween said.
“On Sunday, December 18, 2022, at approximately 7:20 p.m., police were called to a residential building located on Jane Street, north of Rutherford Road, for a report of an active male shooter who had shot several victims,” York Regional Police said in a statement. “When police arrived, an interaction occurred between the officers and a male subject and the subject was shot. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. York Regional Police has notified the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).”
It was the “most terrible call I’ve seen in my entire career,” YRP Constable Laura Nicolle told CNN. She also said that it appeared that the victims were from more than one unit.
Residents of the building were evacuated while police conducted a floor-by-floor search, they were allowed to return to their homes after midnight.
(Image: Screengrab/The Daily Mail)
It has not been determined what the motive for the killing spree was although the New York Post reported that the shooting took place at a condo board meeting.
“On behalf of the City of Vaughan and Council, I offer my condolences to the families of the victims killed in the shootings that occurred in the area of Jane Street and Rutherford Road. I want to recognize the brave first responders who are working to safeguard the situation, tweeted Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca.
On behalf of the City of Vaughan and Council, I offer my condolences to the families of the victims killed in the shootings that occurred in the area of Jane Street and Rutherford Road. I want to recognize the brave first responders who are working to safeguard the situation.
— Steven Del Duca (@StevenDelDuca) December 19, 2022
Police have not yet said what type of gun was used in the massacre. Mass shootings are extremely rare in Canada, a country that prides itself on a lack of violence.
In October, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proudly announced a ban on handguns, stripping law-abiding citizens of their right to defend themselves against future massacres.
We’ve already banned more than 1,500 types of assault-style firearms. And we’ll continue to do whatever it takes to keep guns out of our communities. More details here: https://t.co/bgdU9aoGt4
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) October 21, 2022
Other notable mass shooting incidents in Canada include a 2020 rampage in Nova Scotia that claimed the lives of 16 people and a January 2017 massacre at a mosque in Quebec City in which six were killed.
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