WATCH: Toronto police are investigating a mysterious tunnel found near York University’s Rexall Centre. Mark Carcasole reports.
TORONTO – Toronto police are seeking answers after a mysterious 33-foot long tunnel was found near a Toronto Pan Am Games venue in the city’s west-end.
Authorities say the tunnel was discovered by a conservation officer on Jan. 14 in a “heavily wooded area” approximately 25 metres southwest of the Rexall Centre on the York University campus — the location where tennis will be played for this summer’s Pan Am Games.
“Looking at it and details, it would take more than one person to build this,” said Toronto police Deputy Chief Mark Saunders at a press conference Tuesday morning.
READ MORE: Social media users play true detective in #TorontoTunnel mystery
Police say the tunnel was six-feet four-inches in height and two-feet 10-inches in width supported with plywood walls and a reinforced ceiling composed of 2×8 wood framing.
A short distance away was another smaller hole containing a “gas generator with an extension cord used to supply power to the chamber.”
Police say there is no evidence of machinery used in the excavation of the underground chamber which ends near a six-foot high chain link fence next to the Rexall Centre tennis grounds.
Police say the tunnel also contained a pulley system, moisture resistant light bulbs, sump pump, wheelbarrow and a red portable gas container.
“We’re not done with the forensic aspect of the investigation yet,” said Saunders. “We are unable to determine who constructed the chamber and the motive.”
Police say a rosary with a Remembrance Day poppy was also nailed inside the tunnel wall.
So far, authorities say there is no reason to believe the discovery is linked to any criminal activity, but may be subject to provincial statutes or bylaws.
“There is nothing to suggest this is criminal. We want to find out who built this and why,” Saunders said. “In light of today’s present circumstances, anything that we don’t have an answer to, we want to fully explore, we want to get the answers and if it compromises public safety, we have a concern.”
Police have consulted with provincial, national and international partners during the investigation and have not discovered any links to a terrorist threat.
The hole has since been covered up by police as a safety precaution.
WATCH:Toronto police are asking the public for help tracking down who built a chamber or tunnel a conservation officer stumbled upon near York University. Eric Sorensen reports.
Pan Am Games security officials tell Global News there’s currently no direct threat posed by the recent discovery.
“There is no defined threat to the Games at this point,” said Peter Leon of the Pan Am Games Integrated Security Unit. “The threat level, as per the federal government, remains at medium level.”
Toronto Police have determined the bunker was used this winter but was likely built during the summer. Saunders suggested dense foliage during the summer would have kept the dig out of sight.
Police also believe whoever built the bunker had some expertise, considering its structural integrity. Saunders suggested a bucket pulley system may have been used to haul the dirt out of the tunnel before it was carried away.
But police investigators say it must have been built by more than one person.
“In my personal experience, it would be a lot for one person to do by themselves because if they start getting the pulley, bringing the buckets up, you gotta load the buckets full of dirt, so it would really be a manual task for one person,” Supt. Bryce Evans of the Specialized Criminal Investigations Unit said.
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