Toronto Police attend to a homicide in the Jane and Finch area on April 16, 2015.J.P. MOCZULSKI/The Globe and Mail
A Toronto police superintendent said a spike in violence in the Driftwood community near Jane and Finch is "unacceptable" after four people were charged with more than 100 offences in a brazen shooting.
Akeem Bailey, 25; Clifton Vassel Youria, 29; Maurice Smith, 21; and Daniel Duarte-Alvarez, 20, face multiple charges of attempted murder in the incident, in which five people were wounded on Thursday.
Members of the community were invited to go on a walkabout with police officers and city officials on Friday evening.
Toronto police Division 31 superintendent Tony Riviere said the entire Driftwood community has been victimized by the shooting. "This year," he said, "things were looking extremely good. And then yesterday showed up."
Division 31 embedded four officers in Driftwood in January after a high number of gun-related crimes there. Constables Jay Shin, Sean O'Neill, Brian Sutherland and Dalida Matias were dedicated to the community full-time.
Sharon Mitchell was tending to an infant in her mother's house on Thursday when she heard more than a dozen shots ring out from the front lawn. "I was standing right at the front door when it happened," she said. She immediately grabbed the child and hid near the stairs. "The blue door where I was standing is now riddled with bullets."
Her daughter and mother were out at the time. "Is it safe for us to stand outside our homes? This is what we call home," Ms. Mitchell said. "It's been our home for a very long time.
She said she planned to join others from the neighbourhood for the walkabout to support her community. "I'm a survivor, and I'm just here to say, 'I'm here today,'" Ms. Mitchell said. "And by God's willing, I'll be here tomorrow."
A City Hall community crisis response team met with members of the Driftwood community and the police to discuss a response to support the community on Friday morning. Reverend Sky Starr, chair of the community crisis response team, said it is "challenging" for the embedded police and community to work together, "but it's also encouraging" as police comforted members of the neighbourhood on Friday morning.
"Yes, we would like to not see this happen, but it does happen, unfortunately," Ms. Starr told reporters.
She added that it would take the police, city officials and community members working together to stem violence in the area.
For the walkabout, people from the Driftwood townhouse cluster gathered with police officers, community activists, pastors, city officials and York West MP Judy Sgro to walk through the neighbourhood, beginning at the Driftwood Community Recreation Centre on the corner of Jane Street and Driftwood Avenue. Members of the media were not allowed to join.
At a press conference at City Hall, Mayor John Tory said Thursday's shooting showed a "complete disregard for human life" and addressed residents of the Driftwood community directly, saying "we stand with them."
He also spoke of the need to do more in priority neighbourhoods to prevent similar crimes, and specifically in Toronto Community Housing, including security cameras, better lighting and a heavier police presence.
The four suspects appeared in court on Friday. One of them was shot by a police officer during his arrest and had non-life threatening injuries.
The Special Investigations Unit is looking into the matter. The SIU is an arms-length agency that investigates incidents involving police in which there has been death, serious injuries or allegations of sexual assault.
With a report from Ann Hui.