London police are on the lookout for four male suspects wanted in connection with a violent home invasion and homicide over the weekend that investigators believe was targeted.
Police responded to the scene at 232 Pochard Lane, near Clarke and Hamilton roads, early Sunday morning and located a male victim who had sustained a gunshot wound.
The man was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. He has since been identified as Bill Horrace, 44, of Toronto.
Details remain limited, but police said an investigation found that four male suspects arrived at the address around 4:40 a.m. and forced themselves into the home, where a physical altercation ensued.
The altercation led to Horace being shot by one of the suspects, police said. The four then fled the scene.
“Other family members were inside of the home at the time of the incident,” police said in a statement.
A neighbour living nearby told CTV London that he saw the four suspects speed away in two vehicles.
Three of the suspects wore black hospital-style masks, police said.
One suspect is described by police as six feet tall with a thin build and wearing a mask and a hooded sweatshirt and grey sweat pants.
The second suspect is described as wearing a mask and a hooded sweatshirt with a red stripe down the arm.
The third suspect is described as wearing a mask and a hooded sweatshirt.
The fourth suspect is described as short with a thin build, short braids and grey sweatpants.
It’s the city’s second homicide of the year.
Investigators said they had also received several media inquiries about whether the victim had ties to the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), the historic rebel militia group led by former Liberian president and convicted war criminal Charles Taylor.
“The London Police Service is aware of these inquiries, but cannot confirm this fact at this time,” police said in a statement.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.