Ontario man listed as one of Canada's 25 most wanted arrested abroad

Usman Kassim (BOLO Program)

An Ontario man listed as one of the 25 most wanted individuals in Canada has been arrested in the United Kingdom (UK), the Toronto Police Service (TPS) confirmed Monday.

A spokesperson for TPS told CTV News Toronto that Usman Kassim of Toronto was arrested in Manchester in early October and remains in custody there.

Kassim, 39, has been identified as the main suspect in a January 2020 assault case, an April 2020 drive-by shooting and a 2021 incident in which a woman had a gun held to her head in a parking lot.

In January 2020, Usman was identified as a suspect in an assault investigation and was wanted for several charges, including assault and criminal harassment.

Four months later, officers responded to a shooting in the area of Leslie Street and Sheppard Avenue East in North York. It is alleged that Kassim was driving a vehicle with a passenger when that passenger fired a gun at people sitting in a nearby car. No one was injured.

In relation to that case, Kassim faces two counts of attempted murder.

Police have said the identity of the passenger in the car is still unknown and anyone with information about the incident is being asked to contact investigators.

On Oct. 25, 2021, a woman reported being approached by a man in an underground parking garage in the area of Sheppard Avenue East and Yorkland Road where it’s alleged that Kassim held a gun to her head and threatened to kill her.

Officers responded and located Kassim who was able to flee the scene after ramming a police cruiser. For this case, Kassim is wanted on firearm offenses, threatening death and flight from police.

TPS says they are working on transferring Kassim into Toronto police custody.

“We are in communication with police in Manchester about this individual, but cannot provide more details on those discussions at this time,” Caroline de Kloet of TPS said Monday.

“More information will be released once this individual is in Toronto Police custody.”

Kassim was recently listed as one of the 25 most wanted men in Canada by the BOLO program. A $50,000 reward was offered to anyone who could provide information that led to Kassim's arrest.