Police are searching for a suspect wanted in connection with a brazen daytime stabbing inside the Eaton Centre on Tuesday afternoon.
Emergency crews responded to the shopping mall at around 2:19 p.m. after a caller told them they heard some sort of confrontation near a water fountain across from the La Senza store.
When officers arrived on scene, they located a 20-year-old man suffering from stab wounds.
Police said the victim fell to the ground after being confronted by two male suspects and was stabbed multiple times.
A witness told CTV Toronto that mall security guards were able to intervene during the altercation and briefly disarmed a knife from one of the suspects. The witness said the suspect was eventually able to retrieve the knife and proceeded to stab the victim again in the shoulder area.
Shortly after the incident, police arrested one of two suspects on Queen Street.
A suspect identified as Shane Michael MacLean is facing numerous charges including two counts of assault, two counts of assault with a weapon, attempted murder, possession of a weapon and carrying a concealed weapon.
“This happened during broad daylight, during a busy hour, during lunchtime at one of the busiest malls in this city,” Toronto police Const. Jenniferjit Sidhu told CTV Toronto.
“So any cooperation we can get from the public in identifying this man would be greatly appreciated.”
In a news release Thursday, police said they are actively searching for an outstanding suspect in the case.
They describe the suspect as a black male who is between 20 and 25 years old, approximately five-foot-ten to six-feet with a thin build. He was last seen wearing a grey long sleeve shirt, light-blue jeans, a grey baseball hat, black running shoes and a black backpack.
In an effort to identify the suspect, police have released images taken from security camera footage in the Eaton Centre.
“The man that we’re looking for is wanted in an attempted murder investigation so it is very serious,” Sidhu said.
Anyone with information is being asked to call police at 416-808-5200 or Crime Stoppers at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
With files from Tamara Cherry.
