A 33-year-old man is dead after gunfire erupted from a passing vehicle in a Rexdale parking lot late Wednesday night.
It happened near John Garland Boulevard and Martin Grove Road at around 11:30 p.m.
According to Toronto police, the man was walking into a Pizza Pizza location in the plaza with his girlfriend when the car pulled up. A suspect reportedly got out of the vehicle and fired multiple shots before driving off.
The victim was rushed to hospital in life-threatening condition but died a short time later.
“It’s very tragic,” Toronto police Supt. Ron Taverner said. “He was out just going to get some food at a local store in a plaza and a car pulls up and he is subsequently shot and dies.”
A woman showed up distraught at the scene and had to be cared for by paramedics, who fanned her before putting her in an ambulance.
Investigators have not yet released any information on possible suspects or provided a description of a suspect vehicle.
Police believe there were multiple male occupants inside the vehicle at the time of the shooting.
It is not yet known if the suspect or suspects knew the victim.
Although the victim is not from the area where he was killed, police said he has "ties" to the neighbourhood. The victim’s girlfriend, however, is believed to be from the area.
“They’re nice people, a happy couple,” Pizza Pizza employee Fajar Shahdil told CTV News Toronto. “I can tell (they were) a happy couple. They were always smiling and always here together.”
Shahdil said the two are regulars at the restaurant. He said he heard noises “like firecrackers” go off three times.
“The lady came, she needed help. She said ‘Somebody killed my boyfriend.’ So we called the cops right away,” he said.
Police say they do know the victim’s identity but want to speak with members of his family before making that information public.
“As a kid, we used to get into fist fights,” one area resident said Thursday.
“These days you see minors, children with guys with guns. They shoot for any minor thing.”
“We are scared,” said another resident. “We’re not feeling comfortable.”
Anyone with information is being asked to call Toronto police or Crime Stoppers anonymously.
