Police have arrested a 17-year-old boy in connection with a shootout between rival gangs in a downtown condo which led to the alleged abduction and torture of two teens.
According to police, members of the ‘Young Buck Killas’ gang were hosting a party at a condo building on Front Street near Blue Jays Way on April 18 when members of the rival gang ‘Queen’s Drive Crips’ showed up to crash it.
At about 3 a.m. a standoff between the two gangs occurred after two 17-year-old boys at the party allegedly “tipped off” members of the rival gang about the location of the party.
Police say approximately eight to 10 shots were fired from several different guns.
After fleeing the scene, partygoers reunited at a townhouse on Swansea Mews in the city’s west end. Police say the two boys who allegedly told the Queen’s Drive Crips about the party were then taken hostage by people believed to be members of the Young Buck Killas.
The two boys were allegedly tied to a chair, beaten and forced to play Russian roulette with a loaded handgun.
The victims, police say, were also taken to two other addresses in the Lawrence Heights area where they were beaten and forced to perform undisclosed sexual acts.
The two victims were released by their captors on April 21 -- two days after being taken hostage -- once a ransom was paid by members of their families.
On April 23, police arrested 19-year-old Quinton Gardiner in connection with the case. Gardiner is allegedly one of the leaders of the Young Buck Killas and faces kidnapping-related charges.
On April 29, a suspect identified as 51-year-old Michael Hollinger was arrested in relation to the case and charged with kidnapping and firearms-related offences. Hollinger’s residence in Lawrence Heights was allegedly the location used to house the two kidnapped victims, according to a police source.
A Canada-wide warrant was issued for the two other outstanding suspects, identified as a 23-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy.
On Wednesday, the 17-year-old boy was located in an apartment in North York and arrested by police.
Police say the boy faces a number of charges including kidnapping for ransom, use of a firearm to commit an indictable offence, pointing a firearm, and unauthorized possession of a firearm.
The 17-year-old, who cannot be named under the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was scheduled to make an appearance in court this morning. The charges have not been proven in court.
A suspect identified as 23-year-old Lincoln Anthony Richards is still wanted by police on a Canada-wide warrant.
Richards is believed to be armed and dangerous and police advise anyone who sees him to call 911.
