Hamilton police are searching for multiple suspects they believe are responsible for a targeted home invasion in Mount Hope that has left one man dead and two others in critical condition.
Officers were called to a home on Glancaster Road near Dickenson Road shortly before 3 a.m. Thursday, where they found two men in their 20s suffering from gunshot wounds.
Both were transported to hospital in critical condition.
One of the men has since died from his injuries and the other has undergone emergency surgery.
Police say the two men are the sons of Faqir Ali, 63, who investigators say was ‘forcibly taken’ from the home and likely dragged into a dark SUV.
At around 9 a.m., about six hours after the abduction, Hamilton police located a man with life-threatening injuries at Beach Boulevard near the Burlington Canal Lift Bridge and the QEW.
Media relations Const. Indy Bharaj told reporters during an update later Thursday morning that the man has been confirmed to be Ali and he remains in life-threatening condition.
Detectives say Ali and the two other men targeted were family members living in the household and were not known to police.
Bharaj said the motive behind the abduction and murder is unknown at this time, calling the incident “disturbing”.
“This isn’t something that Hamilton should ever get used to,” he said during a media update, adding that it’s the third shooting in the city within the past few days.
“This isn’t something that should become normal in Hamilton. We want people to come forward with any criminal activity in their areas. If you see something, say something – bring it to our attention so we can start putting an end to this stuff.”
On his website and on Facebook, Faqir Ali describes himself as a lawyer, businessman, spiritual leader and public figure.
Global News has not found any record of Ali being licensed to practice law, though he claimed to have helped former Liberal Prime Minister Paul Martin and Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper in their election campaigns.
According to a Mississauga law firm, Ali owed almost $12,000 dollars in damages and legal costs from an unpaid loan agreement.
In 2018 a small claims court judge ordered him to pay, but he hadn’t.
The law firm posted about the outstanding debt and published his Glancaster Road address on their website.
Police spent most of Thursday at the two crime scenes one at Glancaster and the other on Beach Boulevard canvassing the neighbourhood for potential witnesses and video footage.
Investigators are appealing to anyone with dash cam footage in the area of Beach Boulevard near the lift bridge at around 9 a.m. on Thursday, or anyone who may have witnessed anything suspicious, to contact them.
Anyone with information can reach out to police at 905-546-3843 or leave a tip anonymously with Crime Stoppers.