Victims injured on Sunday included a group of people attending an unsanctioned car rally in a Scarborough parking lot, a person in an apartment building, and teenage residents of a townhouse complex standing near an adjacent playground.
Toronto police Supt. Steve Watts says two teenage boys aged 15 and 17, along with four other men and one woman struck by gunfire on Sunday are all still recovering in hospital, with injuries considered serious but non-life-threatening.
CP24 has learned that the shooting at an unsanctioned car rally on McCowan Road was originally planned in Pickering, but Durham Regional Police blocked access to the Pickering location and drivers instead went to Scarborough.
Asked why Toronto police did not block access to the site on McCowan Road, Watts said little.
“My understanding is we were notified later in the afternoon that the event was moving west and that’s all I will say to that.”
Toronto Mayor John Tory said a rash of shooting incidents on Sunday where eight people suffered gunshot wounds in the span of eight hours, including one confirmed homicide across the city was “extremely disturbing.”
“Any gun violence in our city is unacceptable and the fact there were several shootings in our city this weekend including one where two young boys were victims is extremely disturbing,” Tory said in a statement sent to CP24 early on Monday morning. “I have spoken to Chief Ramer and I know police are working to solve each case and ensure those who engage in gun violence in our city are brought to justice.”