Police in Toronto have arrested ten people and filed more than 200 charges in connection with a mass shooting at an east-end pub, as well as other violent incidents.
Police still say it was a miracle no one was killed. Nine of the victims were hit by gunfire, three were injured by broken glass. One of those shot was hit six times but still survived.
Police allege three gunmen entered the Piper Arms Pub on its opening night and fired indiscriminately into the crowd.
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw says, after a three-month investigation, 10 men have been arrested, with one person still at large. Of the total of 203 charges, 24 of them are of attempted murder. Demkiw said the effects of the mass shooting remain devastating for the victims and for the sense of safety in Toronto’s communities.
“This kind of brazen violence, this disregard for human life is completely unacceptable,” Demkiw said. “These events underscore the importance of the law reform we’ve asked for in the past. Including law reform concerning shootings in public spaces. Gunfire in our public spaces must be recognized for the harm it causes, not just for those involved directly but for the bystanders and the public at large.”
Police said those arrested are also linked to several other violent incidents in the Greater Toronto Area, all taking place between March and May. Surveillance video provided by police shows other incidents of gunmen firing in public areas, including a tow truck yard, a gas station and a commercial plaza.
Several other police jurisdictions were involved in the investigation, dubbed Project Nighthawk. In another incident one man was killed and five others wounded when at least three gunmen opened fire in a north-central area of the city.
