A 23-year-old man is facing a long list of charges after he allegedly fled from police in a stolen vehicle last week and then attempted to carjack an individual at gunpoint.
York Regional Police say that officers responded to a parking lot off Steeles Avenue near Jane Street at around 10:20 p.m. on July 5 to investigate a suspicious vehicle.
Police say that when an officer pulled up alongside the vehicle, a white BMV SUV, the driver rammed their cruiser and then sped away from the scene.
Police say that the suspect was then subsequently involved in another collision on Jane Street at Hullmar Drive, which lead to them ditching the vehicle and attempting a gunpoint carjacking.
“The suspect got out of the BMW and ran to a parking lot on Jane Street. He climbed in to the back seat of a vehicle idling in the parking lot and pointed a handgun at the driver, attempting to steal the car. Officers located the suspect and he was taken into custody,” police said in a news release issued on Thursday.
Police say that the suspect was taken to hospital following his arrest, where he was diagnosed with a serious injury.
As a result the Special Investigations Unit was notified and has since invoked its mandate.
Police say that officers seized a loaded handgun from the suspect during the course of the arrest.
A quantity of suspected cocaine and fentanyl was also taken from the white SUV he was originally operating, police say.
Akwasi Edusei, of Toronto, is facing eight combined charges, including robbery with a firearm and dangerous operation.
“At the time of this incident, the accused was on two separate firearm prohibitions and was wanted on a warrant for previous offences,” police said.
