Community residents and concerned citizens came together Wednesday night to mourn a mother of four killed in a Cabbagetown alley early Tuesday morning.
A candlelight vigil and neighbourhood meeting began at 7 p.m. at 85 Bleecker St. -- steps away from where 55-year-old Nighisti "Nicky" Semret was stabbed to death on her way home from work Tuesday morning.
“It’s a shock, and so sad to see that a person is killed,” one woman attending the vigil told CP24.
“I lived here 30 years ago, and always felt a bit nervous,” another man said. “Moving back here recently, I’m really surprised that it’s still got that edge to it.”
More details were revealed today from both police and friends about the woman who came to Canada for a better life.
"She was an upstanding citizen," one woman who identified herself as Alyson said earlier in the day. Alyson, who knew Semret, helped organize Wednesday's meeting.
Semret was a refugee from Africa who lived a quiet, modest life and may not have had any relatives in Canada, according to a veteran homicide investigator.
Though it's not clear how long ago she immigrated, Semret got herself settled quickly, finding refuge in a woman's shelter before finding a job and an apartment all on her own. Friends described her as an independent, hard-working woman.
The woman's colleagues told CP24 that she often talked about her four children who remained back in Africa.
Homicide squad Det.-Sgt. Gary Giroux said Semret was attacked as she returned home from her overnight shift as a supervisor-cleaner at the Delta Chelsea hotel on Gerrard Street in downtown Toronto. She was employed by Andora Maintenance -- an Etobicoke company that contracts out cleaners to hotels.
Giroux said police do not know if Semret was the victim of a random attack because it is early in the investigation and they are still delving into her background.
"It's a possibility that we're looking at," said Giroux, who revealed the victim's name and other details at a news conference Wednesday morning.
Semret, who moved to Canada from Eritrea a few years ago, lived in the neighbourhood where she was killed, and police believe her killer lives in the same area or is known to people there.
"Someone in that area knows who this particular individual is," Giroux said.
Given that potential, Giroux urged people with information about the suspect to contact investigators by phone or by visiting a mobile command unit that has been set up near the homicide scene.
Investigators are also trying to confirm the motive and determine whether the woman knew her killer.
Speaking to the potential motive, Giroux said the suspect may have “done this type of conduct before,” referring to potential involvement in purse-snatchings or muggings.
Giroux warned all residents to be aware of their surroundings, but added that police have upped their presence in the neighbourhood to make residents feel safer.
Police unable to locate victim's family
Homicide detectives publicly released the woman's name despite the fact that investigators were unable to contact her next of kin to inform them of her death.
Semret's employer, people at the apartment where she lived and immigration officials do not have contact information for her family, suggesting she may be alone in Canada, Giroux said.
Police are working with consular officials to locate her relatives.
During the news conference, Giroux apologized to those who are learning of the woman's death via the media.
Grief counselling is being offered to Semret's co-workers at the Delta Chelsea, where she worked for a contracted firm, said hotel general manager Ron Pellerine.
Victim was a mother, co-worker says
During an interview with CP24 reporter Katie Simpson, a co-worker, who would not give her name, described Semret as a “kind, responsible and hard-working” woman who had a "rough life" back in Africa.
In a crime that has shocked the neighbourhood, Semret was fatally stabbed as she walked alone in an alley near Ontario and Winchester streets Tuesday at about 7 a.m.
In a rare move, police released surveillance video within hours of the attack in an attempt to identify the suspect.
The video - recorded by a security camera on the south side of a building at 85 Bleecker St. - shows a man reaching into his jacket as he follows Semret, who is holding an umbrella to shield herself from rain.
Giroux said police believe the man was reaching for a "kitchen-style" knife he had in his jacket.
Moments later, people who live in the area were alerted by the woman’s screams, and at least one witness intervened to help the woman.
Paul Down said his friend interrupted the attack as the suspect stood over the victim’s body.
“That’s when my buddy came out of nowhere and whacked the guy with an umbrella,” Down told CP24’s George Lagogianes.
Down said the suspect ran off with the knife.
Cabbagetown residents concerned about safety
Cabbagetown residents said the incident is both shocking and worrisome.
Tina Baltare said she usually walks near the alley with her son around the time the homicide occurred, but her walk was delayed Tuesday morning because her son was asleep.
“Yesterday all day I was just shaken because we either could have seen it, we could have been it,” she told CP24. “I go through all the what-ifs and the if-onlys. It’s scary. What if I was there with my baby?”
Police were still on scene when Baltare walked through the alley Wednesday morning.
“Today, we looked behind our shoulders and I was just making sure I knew my surroundings,” she said. “We can’t be afraid of our neighbourhood, either, because this is where we live.”
Meanwhile, the suspect is described as a white male who is about five-foot-10 to six-foot-two and 150 to 200 pounds with a medium build.
He was wearing a dark-coloured three-quarter length coat that buttons up, a light or white scarf, a dark hat with a peak, dark pants and shoes, Giroux said.
Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at 416-808-7400 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
With files from CP24 reporter Katie Simpson
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