The condominium where a mass shooting took place in Vaughan, Ont., was seeking a court order to force the suspected gunman to sell and vacate his unit, documents obtained by Global News suggest.
Speaking at a press conference Monday afternoon, York Regional Police Chief Jim MacSween said emergency crews received a report of an active shooting call at around 7:20 p.m. on Dec. 18 at a condo building on Jane Street, just north of Rutherford Road.
He said officers encountered a “horrific scene” with five deceased victims having been shot and killed in three separate units on separate floors of the building.
Three men and two women were killed, police said. Another woman was seriously injured.
Three of the victims killed were members of the condo’s board, MacSween confirmed.
MacSween said the motive for the shooting remains under investigation.
The gunman, identified by police as 73-year-old Francesco Villi, was killed after an encounter with an officer on the condo’s third floor, MacSween said.
Villi was a resident of the building, officials said.
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In a factum obtained by Global News, set to have been presented in court on Dec. 19, lawyers representing the condominium were seeking an order directing a man by the same name — Francesco Villi — to sell and vacate his unit in the building within 90 days.
The document details what the lawyers suggest was Villi’s harassing behaviour towards the condo’s staff, board members, employees and residents.
In the document, the lawyers for the condo corporation said an interim order was enacted against Villi in October 2019.
Under the interim order, Villi was directed not to make videos or audio recordings of board members, management, residents or employees, and not to post on social media regarding the matter before the court that he had filed against the building.
Villi was also ordered to only initiate communications with the condo corporation by email, letter, or — in an emergency — by phone.
However, the document claimed Villi repeatedly breached the interim order. The condo moved to have him be held in contempt of court, and he was ordered to pay $29,500 to the condo in September 2019.
The factum says after the penalty in September, Villi complied with the order for around seven weeks, but had allegedly begun breaching it again in April 2019.
The documents suggest Villi began confronting staff again, some of whom said they were “alarmed.” It said some began looking for work elsewhere.
The factum claimed Villi had also resumed making social media posts about the condo and its board members.
The lawyers claimed Villi “started harassing residents by swearing at them and taking photographs of them without their permission.”
The document alleges Villi’s conduct was “seriously disturbing Condominium staff and directors” and was “impeding the Condominium’s ability to manage itself.”
“His conduct has caused at least two condominium managers to quit and continues to seriously disturb concierge staff,” the document read.
The document claims Villi also continued to approach security staff — in breach of the court order — which was “distressing to staff.”
“Two of the Condominium’s security guards reportedly stopped working for the Condominium due to Villi’s behaviour,” the factum read. “All guards, at one point or another, told their supervisor that they do not like dealing with Villi, he makes them uncomfortable, and that they would not be working at the Condominium if they did not have bills to pay.”
Two security guards filed complaints about Villi, the document suggests, with one asking for his work hours to be reduced “as a result of Villi’s abuse.”
The security guard said he would reduce his work hours further or stop working at the condo altogether “as Villi’s insults and comments about him on Villi’s Facebook page are impacting his reputation and dignity.”
That guard claimed Villi was creating “unnecessary mental stress” for him.
The other security guard reported a “highly offensive” and “distressing” encounter with Villi. The guard testified that he was “frightened” of Villi and did not want to be approached by him again.
The factum also suggests Villi also made several social media posts about the condo and its board members, which breached the order.
The lawyers said the posts included photos of the condo’s directors and employees with accusations that they had engaged in “fraud, deceit, manipulation, corruption and criminal activities,” and other posts where Villi claimed the condo’s manager was a “criminal” and a “liar.”
The documents suggest Villi also made posts on social media claiming the building was unsafe and had been built without inspections.
According to the document, several complaints about Villi had been filed by residents of the building.
One resident claimed Villi had harassed her and had called her a demon and a devil, the document said.
Another resident filed a complaint, alleging Villi had sworn at her and a group of other women, and had called her husband a “fat pig.” The attorneys said the police spoke to the resident regarding the incident.
According to the document, a number of residents filed a joint complaint, suggesting Villi would swear at other residents, would be abusive towards them, and was “extremely rude to them.” Global News has not independently viewed the lawsuit referenced in the factum.
Another condo owner told the building’s manager that her tenant had voiced that she did not feel safe or comfortable in the building.
The document suggests several warning letters had been sent to Villi regarding his alleged behaviour.
According to the document, in addition to asking Villi to sell and vacate his unit, the condominium was also requesting additional orders to direct Villi to cease taking photos of condo board members, management, residents and employees and to stop making posts on social media that were “threatening, abusive, intimidating, or harassing” toward them.
The condo was also seeking an order to direct Villi to remove any existing social media posts of the like within seven days, the factum said.
The condo board was also set to request orders to direct Villi to “stop spitting on the common elements and to stop harassing, humiliating, deprecating, and swearing” at condo residents, management and staff online, in person, by writing or by phone.
The document suggests the condo was seeking an order to direct Villi to pay the full indemnity costs of the motion.
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