Two people are dead and two others suffered serious injuries following a shooting that police have described as a “gun battle” outside a plaza in Scarborough early Wednesday morning.
Shots rang out in the parking lot of a plaza in the area of Ellesmere Road and Oakley Boulevard, near Midland Avenue, shortly after 2:30 a.m.
Speaking to reporters at the scene on Wednesday, Det. Rod Benson said a “significant” number of shots were fired during what appears to be an exchange of gunfire.
One male was pronounced dead at the scene and a female later died in hospital. Two other males were transported to a trauma centre to be treated for serious injuries.
Police did not provide information on the ages of the victims.
Benson could not say exactly how many shots were fired, noting that as of 9:30 a.m., forensic officers were still finding new shell casings.
“Several hours after the fact, they are still in the process of finding them and marking them so that they can be photographed,” Benson said.
He said one firearm was located at the scene but it is unclear if the weapon belonged to any of the victims.
“It certainly appears to have been a gun battle,” Benson said.
“At this point, we don’t have any suspect information. That will be something we will be able to provide probably later today or possibly tomorrow.”
He urged anyone who witnessed the incident or has dash camera footage to contact investigators.
“We are beginning a very robust video canvas. So we will be searching for video and speaking to witnesses,” Benson added.
He said he expects officers will be on scene at the plaza for most of the day.
“We understand that incidents like this, where people are shot, people are killed, create a significant concern for members of the community,” Duty Insp. Todd Jocko told reporters on Wednesday afternoon.
“Please know that we are dedicating all necessary resources to this investigation and the residents can expect to see an increased police presence in the area for the time being.
Jocko conceded that rain that began to fall on Wednesday afternoon is not ideal as investigators continue to process the evidence.
“Certainly rain is a factor when we are doing any kind of investigation on scene,” he said, adding that officers have had a considerable amount of time to process the scene already. “Rain is not always our friend when it comes to this kind of investigation.”
