TORONTO -- The province’s police watchdog is now investigating a fire at a downtown Toronto highrise condo building that left a 32-year-old man dead on Friday night.
Shortly after 8 p.m., officers with the Toronto Police Service were called to 220 Victoria Street, located in the area of Dundas Street East and Shuter Street, for a report of an assault.
“Officers made their way to an apartment unit on the 12th floor and forced the door open,” Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said in a news release issued on Saturday morning. “They immediately saw flames inside.”
Toronto Fire was also called to the scene and deemed the blaze to be a two-alarm.
From outside the building, flames were visible and heavy smoke was seen billowing from a balcony on the 12th floor.
At the time, attempts were made by officers to communicate with the man who was living in the unit, the SIU said. Officers then searched the unit and located the man, who was then brought to lobby of the building where responding paramedics were waiting.
Paramedics then pronounced the man deceased.
At the height of the blaze, 14 firetrucks were on scene.
The fire was knocked out before midnight and Toronto Fire said there was a delay in their response time due to the police activity related to the incident.
Speaking on Friday night, Const. Jenifferjit Sidhu with the Toronto Police Service said officers were in the area at around 8:23 p.m. for an assault call. According to her, the fire occurred while police were there investigating.
The cause and origin of the fire, and its relation to the assault call, is not yet known.
The Office of the Ontario Fire Marshal has been notified.
Two investigators and two forensic investigators with the SIU have been assigned to the case.
The SIU is asking anyone who may have any information pertaining to this investigation to contact them at 1-800-787-8529.
The SIU is an arm’s length agency that investigates reports of death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault that involve police.
