A 15-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man are facing dozens of charges in connection to a shooting outside the U.S. Consulate in Toronto late last month.
Toronto police Chief Myron Demkiw and Chief Supt. Joe Matthews announced the arrests Thursday, more than a week after the July 27 incident.
Police laid a total of 32 charges, and both are facing multiple counts of failing to comply with their court-ordered release conditions, Demkiw said.
He also alleged the two suspects were criminals for hire.
“This case does reflect a broader pattern that I’ve spoken of before. These are brazen offences, and we need proper deterrence and justice reform,” he said.
Around 4:46 a.m. that day, an officer stationed near the consulate at 360 University Ave. heard the shot ring out. Evidence of the shooting was located outside the consulate. A single shell casing was recovered and there was damage to the facade.
A white late-model Honda Accord with no licence plates was seen speeding away from the building. Officers engaged in a high-speed chase along Gerrard Street East and onto the Don Valley Parkway, with speeds exceeding 140 kilometres per hour. Officers stopped the chase near Don Mills Road and the Don Valley Parkway, as per protocol, police said.
Two security personnel were inside the consulate at the time, but no injuries were reported.
Matthews said the vehicle, which had been reported stolen earlier that day, was found abandoned in an area of Scarborough.
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He also alleged the two suspects, who were arrested Saturday and Wednesday, are behind an arson in Caledon that unfolded three days before the shooting.
Police are getting close to finding out who is behind the criminal-for-hire network, Matthews said.
“In many circumstances, we know they’re not getting paid. They’re not getting compensated for what they’re doing,” he said.
Xen-Ul-Abdeen Syed is facing 15 charges including possession of a loaded prohibited or restricted firearm, arson causing damage to property and four counts of fail to comply. The boy, who can’t be identified due to provisions under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, is facing 17 charges including six counts of fail to comply with a release order.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Consulate was targeted in a shooting that American authorities linked to an alleged international campaign from Iranian-backed groups against targets in Europe and North America. An Iraqi national in the U.S. is facing terrorism charges tied to the March 10 shooting.
An 18-year-old man was also arrested last month in Toronto. Sheldon Tracy-Stewart was charged with 11 counts, including discharging a firearm, illegal firearm possession and vehicle theft.
Court documents obtained by Global News also allege Tracy-Stewart was bound by a release order at the time of his arrest. He is charged with failing to comply with a release order under the Criminal Code.
The investigation also saw the death of a veteran Toronto police officer. Const. Marc Pinizzotto, a member of the emergency task force, was shot at while assisting in a raid tied to the probe.
Nicholas Bennett, a 19-year-old man, was charged with first-degree murder for Pinizzotto’s death.
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