Toronto Police have recovered an illegal handgun they say was used in the shooting death of 14-year-old Lecent Ross in Toronto’s Jamestown neighbourhood on Thursday.
“(Ross) died of a gunshot wound fired from an illegal, prohibited, semi-automatic handgun,” said Det. Rich Petrie.
Officers recovered a .40-calibre Smith and Wesson gun from the scene of the shooting. Police say they will run tests on the weapon in hopes of uncovering the details of how the teenage girl was killed.
“We’re going to test (the gun) for DNA, for fingerprints and see if it’s been used in any other incident in the city,” Petrie said.
The shooting occurred in a townhouse on Jamestown Crescent, in the area of Kipling Avenue and Albion Road, at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Toronto Police Const. Caroline de Kloet told reporters.
Police said the teenage victim was found unconscious and she was not breathing. Paramedics performed CPR on the girl before she was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.
The death is being treated as “suspicious,” Petrie said.
A neighbour told CTV Toronto she was home at the time of the shooting and heard a single gunshot from the townhouse. Police have recovered the gun used in the shooting and are describing it as an “illegal weapon”.
Police would not confirm who fired the gun. Police say they’re not calling the shooting an accident, but are not looking for a suspect either.
The teen did not live at the residence, police say, and was visiting a friend at the time of the shooting.
Toronto police are going door-to-door in the neighbourhood searching for witnesses.
With a report from Heather Wright
