Police in Toronto are investigating after a gun shot was fired at the US consulate in the city on Monday, the second time this year such an incident has happened. Police cordoned off the street as they investigated the scene.
Early on Monday morning, an officer stationed outside the consulate building heard the sound of a single gunshot and noticed a white car without a licence plate fleeing the scene. Police briefly engaged in a high-speed car chase before ending it over safety concerns. No injuries were reported in the incident. It is unclear how many individuals were involved in the attack.
Monday's shooting comes after Toronto police arrested three people for a similar incident in March, which investigators have linked to a broader gun-for-hire network.
How are authorities investigating the latest shooting?
Toronto police said they were investigating the latest attack with the help of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and international law enforcement partners.
Supt Jonathan Ko with the RCMP called it
another troubling incident, while the city's mayor, Olivia Chow, called the attack
brazen.
The shooting occurred around 04:45 local time (09:45BST). Officers said they recovered one shell casing at the scene and damage to the building's facade.
At least two individuals were inside the consulate at the time, Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said, but he noted the building is
very heavily fortifiedand those inside likely did not hear the gun shot.
He added that the investigation remains ongoing and that police across the city have been asked to lookout for the potential suspects.
We will bring the people responsible to justice,Barredo said.
In a post on X, the US Consulate in Toronto thanked the police for their response.
What happened after the March shooting?
Police have been stationed outside the US consulate since March, when shots were fired outside the building in what police at the time called a
national security incident. No one was injured in that attack.
In June, police carried out raids in relation to the shooting. One police officer, 43-year-old Const Marc Pinizzotto, was killed during the operation.
Police later arrested several suspects aged 18 and 19 for allegedly carrying out a string of shootings, including the March attack outside the consulate, as part of a larger gun-for-hire network.
Could the consulate shooting be linked to other attacks?
Toronto police said on Monday there was currently nothing to link the consulate shooting with recent attacks on two Jewish-owned bakeries in the city, though they did not rule out a connection. The bakeries were targeted over the weekend, and at least one was hit by gunfire.
In May, US officials arrested an Iraqi national, 32-year-old Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, for allegedly planning more than a dozen attacks in North America and Europe targeting Jewish institutions and US interests, including the one at the US consulate in Toronto.
Police in Toronto have not said if al-Saadi is linked to their investigation, and they have not specified a motive for this latest consulate shooting.
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Toronto police officer killed in raid linked to US consulate shooting
Key Facts
- Police in Toronto are investigating a gun shot fired at the US consulate on Monday.
- An officer heard a single gunshot and saw a white car without a licence plate fleeing the scene.
- No injuries were reported; officers recovered one shell casing and saw damage to the facade.
- The March shooting at the same building led to arrests later linked to a broader gun-for-hire network.
- Police have not said whether Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi is linked to the latest case.
