A man is dead after he was shot in a central Etobicoke parking lot some time on Tuesday.

Toronto police Const. Caroline de Kloet said officers were called to Rathburn Road and The West Mall at 1:17 p.m. for a report that a passerby located a male suffering from gunshot wounds.

Paramedics said they arrived to find an adult male in life-threatening condition.

He was not taken to hospital after paramedics failed to locate vital signs.

He was pronounced dead shortly before 3 p.m.

A witness who did not wish to be identified told CP24 he was out walking his dog when he saw a body lying on the ground in a parking lot behind an apartment tower.

He said he thought at first it was someone working underneath a car, but then his dog sprinted toward the body and he saw blood.

The witness then said he screamed to try and elict a response, and then saw the man had been shot several times, and there were several shell casings on the ground next to him.

Insp. Darren Aldritt of 22 Division said that dispatch did not receive any calls for sounds of gunshots in the area where the man’s body was found Tuesday.

So officers have no idea as of now when the man was shot.

“We don’t have any information on how long. . .  or when this actually happened,” he said.

He urged anyone who heard the gunshots to call homicide detectives or Crime Stoppers immediately.

Aldritt also added that because they have no idea when the incident occurred, they do not have any suspect information either.

Police said they were bringing a canine unit to the scene and homicide detectives have been canvassing the neighbourhood.