One year after a daytime playground shooting that sent two little girls to hospital, Toronto Police have launched an aggressive advertising campaign to track down a man wanted for attempted murder.
On Tuesday, T’Quan Robertson’s face was plastered on seven billboards across the city. A digital-advertising truck has also been contracted out to roll through “strategic” neighbourhoods, projecting photos of the 24-year-old suspect’s face.
Mr. Robertson is wanted for attempted murder and aggravated assault in connection with the June 14, 2018, shooting in a Scarborough park. There were 11 small children on the playground at the time, and two girls – ages 5 and 9 – were struck by stray bullets.
“Mr. Robertson, there is nowhere to go. We will apprehend you sooner rather than later,” Toronto Police Deputy Chief Peter Yuen said at a news conference on Tuesday. “Do the right thing. Call a lawyer, and turn yourself in.”
The campaign is the product of a partnership between Toronto Police, Crime Stoppers and the BOLO Program – a Montreal-based non-profit organization that launched last May and describes itself as an “amplifier” of most-wanted notices across Canada. BOLO is a term used by law enforcement, short for “be on the lookout.”
The program is an initiative by the Stephan Crétier Foundation, whose founder is the president, chairman and chief executive of GardaWorld Security Corp. In addition to providing the ads, and co-ordinating a corresponding social-media blitz, BOLO is also offering a reward of up to $50,000 for tips leading to Mr. Robertson’s arrest. They do not accept tips, but rather direct tipsters to police. Previous campaigns have collectively yielded more than 200 tips, program director Maxime Langlois said on Tuesday, although they have yet to lead to an arrest.
Deputy Chief Yuen said they welcome the partnership.
“We’re not looking for witnesses, or for people to testify. This case is ready to go to trial. We’re just looking for the location of the suspect,” he said. “I’m very confident that someone out in the community knows where Mr. Robertson is, and we need that phone call to assist us.”
The young girls who were injured in the playground shooting were treated in hospital and have recovered. But the incident has scarred their entire family, their mother, Stacey King, told The Globe last year.
Ms. King, a self-employed mother of eight, was a vocal advocate against gun violence in the months after her girls were shot – calling for more resources to address the root causes of violence among youth.
The shooting occurred during a spike in gun violence last summer. In his year-end reflection, Police Chief Mark Saunders cited gun and gang violence as a primary concern for Toronto in 2019. There have been a total of 168 shooting incidents in the city so far this year. By this time last year, there had been 198.
Two men, Sheldon Eriya, 21, and Tarrick Rhoden, 23, have previously been arrested in the playground-shooting case. A third man was charged with being an accessory after the fact. Police have also previously identified the intended target of that shooting as Clinton McDonald, 26, who was arrested last fall and charged with a number of firearm-related offences.
Mr. Robertson – who also goes by the nickname “Top Gunna” – is known to have connections in the Greater Toronto Area. Deputy Chief Yuen cautioned on Tuesday that anyone who might be helping Mr. Robertson evade arrest could be charged with accessory after the fact.
Molly Hayes