The shooting in Rexdale over the weekend that left a man dead and four others injured may have been random and a vehicle of interest has been seized, a police source tells CP24.
The source who has direct knowledge of the homicide investigation said the group of men shot at Sunday night outside a school near Mount Olive Drive and Kipling Avenue may have not been targeted, and they could have just been at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Police have not publicly said what was the motive for the shooting.
The men were gathered in the school's parking lot after a soccer game, and police said a dark pickup truck later arrived.
Two suspects got out of the truck and shot at the group before fleeing the area in the vehicle.
Five victims suffered gunshot wounds and were taken to the hospital. One of them later died of their injuries. He has been identified by police as 61-year-old Delroy "George" Parkes.
VEHICLE OF INTEREST SEIZED
CP24 has also obtained surveillance video of a vehicle that could be linked to the shooting. In the clip, a pickup truck crashes into a parked car, and seconds later, a police cruiser appears and stops at the scene.
Officers get out of the cruiser and shouts at the occupants of the pickup to put their hands up as they run away.
The crash happened approximately four kilometres away from the mass shooting. The police source told CP24 that investigators have not determined the vehicle's connection to the incident, but it is considered a vehicle of interest as it matches the suspect vehicle.
Police have only described the suspect vehicle as a dark-coloured newer-model pickup truck.
SCHOOL REOPENS
North Albion Collegiate Institute reopened to students and staff on Tuesday morning.
Both the school and an on-site daycare were shuttered on Monday in the wake of the weekend violence.
Toronto police have increased the number of officers in the neighbourhood in the wake of the deadly shooting, and a command post has been set up in the community.
While police have not said if the shooting is in any way tied to gangs, Manthan Nagar, a Grade 11 student at North Albion, told CP24 Tuesday that he has seen an uptick in gang-related activities at the school in recent months.
"More kids (are) being influenced by their surroundings and their environment," he said.
He added that in an effort to avoid dangerous situations, he is cautious about where he goes in the neighbourhood, particularly at night.
He said the increased police presence near the school does make him feel a bit safer.
"It does help knowing that we can just go out and get help," he added.
