A man who was arrested at a subway station less than an hour after 15-year-old Jane Creba was shot and killed on Boxing Day 2005, has had all weapons charges dropped against him.
The Crown dropped the charges against Andre Thompson on Thursday. Thompson had been in police custody for four years facing seven charges in connection with a gun that is believed to be one of three weapons used in the fatal shootout between two groups on Yonge Street.
Crown prosecutor Maurice Gillezeau told a provincial court judge that he didn't believe he could secure a conviction against Thompson based on the evidence.
Creba, who was a student at Riverdale Collegiate Institute, was shopping with her sister on Yonge Street, just north of the Eaton Centre, when a gunfight broke out between two groups of men in front of a Foot Locker store.
Six other bystanders were shot in the melee but Creba was the only one who suffered a fatal injury.
Thompson and a second man, Jorrell Simpson Rowe, were arrested at the Castle Frank subway station less than an hour after the shooting.
Rowe, who was 17 at the time, was carrying a gun that was later forensically linked to the crime scene.
He has since been convicted of second-degree murder and aggravated assault in connection with the incident. During trial, the Crown argued he fired a weapon and therefore contributed to the circumstances that lead to Creba's murder.
His right as minor to have his identity hidden from the public was waived when he was sentenced as an adult.
Late last month, a court dismissed charges of manslaughter against Thompson and four other men after the Crown once again said there was no reasonable ground for conviction.
