Ottawa, Dec 19 (AFP\/APP):A 73-year-old man killed five people and wounded another Sunday night in a shooting at an apartment building in the suburbs of the Canadian city of Toronto, police said.<\/p>\n
The suspect, whom authorities have not named but said was a resident of the building in Vaughan, Ontario, was later shot dead by law enforcement responding to emergency calls.<\/p>\n
Police were called to the site about 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of Toronto at approximately 7:20 pm (0020 GMT) local time.<\/p>\n
Kristy Denette, a spokeswoman for Ontario’s Special Investigative Unit, which is called in to investigate whenever an officer discharges a firearm, said “one officer fired at the man and he was killed” in a hallway.<\/p>\n
At 8:00 pm, the suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, and a semi-automatic handgun was recovered by police, she said.<\/p>\n
“There was multiple deceased (victims) located on several floors” of the building, she added.<\/p>\n
The injured person was taken to the hospital in serious condition, according to a statement, but their life is not in danger.<\/p>\n
Earlier, local police chief Jim MacSween told reporters that when officers arrived at the apartment building, “they were met with… a horrendous scene where numerous victims were deceased.”<\/p>\n
“They (police) went right into the building and dealt with the situation. One of our officers did discharge a firearm, I can confirm that. And as a result the suspect is deceased,” he added.<\/p>\n
Police are investigating the motive and whether there was a specific connection between the victims and the suspect, who allegedly acted alone.<\/p>\n
Vaughan mayor Steven Del Duca said Monday morning that it was an “unspeakable” and “horrible tragedy.”<\/p>\n
“People are just in absolute shock,” he added. “This is something that I never thought I would see here… especially just a few days before Christmas (and) at the start of Hanukkah.”<\/p>\n
Federal public safety minister, Marco Mendicino, tweeted: “My thoughts are with the loved ones of those killed in Sunday night’s tragic shooting in Vaughan.”<\/p>\n
While it suffers far fewer mass shootings than its American neighbor, Canada has experienced an upsurge in gun violence, which has prompted it to recently legislate to ban handguns.<\/p>\n
In April 2020, a gunman disguised as a policeman killed 22 people in the eastern province of Nova Scotia, Canada’s worst mass shooting.<\/p>\n
In September this year, a man killed 11 people and stabbed 18 others, mainly in an isolated Indigenous community in Saskatchewan province.<\/p>\n
Firearms-related violent crimes account for less than three percent of all violent crimes in Canada — but since 2009 the per capita rate of guns being fired with intent to kill or wound has increased fivefold.<\/p>\n
Canada banned 1,500 types of military-grade or assault-style firearms in May 2020, days after the Nova Scotia shooting.<\/p>\n
Parliament is currently considering adding more weapons to its prohibited weapons list, but the ruling Liberals have faced some pushback from hunters and sports shooters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ottawa, Dec 19 (AFP\/APP):A 73-year-old man killed five people and wounded another Sunday night in a shooting at an apartment building in the suburbs of the Canadian city of Toronto, police said. The suspect, whom authorities have not named but said was a resident of […]<\/p>\n
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