Three Toronto police officers were injured Thursday afternoon during two suspected auto thefts that occurred almost a block away from each other.
At 12:17 p.m., police said an officer was attempting to stop a vehicle that was reported stolen near Finch Avenue West and Silverstone Drive in Rexdale.
Police said the driver of the stolen vehicle rammed the officer’s scout car, and fled the area. The officer sustained minor injuries. No suspect description was provided.
Some 17 minutes later at 12:34 p.m. near Albion Road and Silverstone Drive, police say they were trying to stop a vehicle that had stolen plates attached to it.
The force said the occupants got out of the car and fled on foot. The officers were hurt during a foot chase, sustaining minor injuries. Two people were later arrested.
The incidents come just a week after a Toronto police officer was shot in midtown during an auto theft investigation.
The shooting happened around 5 p.m. on Oct. 2 near Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue. Police said an officer approached two people at the time and one of them shot him, before they both fled the area.
Police said the man accused of attempted murder in the was out on bail at the time, and have charged him attempted murder, breaching a probation order and breaching another order not to possess a firearm. A woman and a 15-year-old were also arrested and charged.