New details have emerged about what transpired in the moments before and after the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy in Toronto’s Mount Dennis neighbourhood over the weekend.
According to a witness, the victim was with two friends on the corner of Buttonwood and Charlton Settlement avenues near a bench when he was gunned down.
“I heard five gunshots, waited about a minute and I came outside and I saw two young individuals carrying him and asking me for help,” said the man, who asked that we not use his name.
The man said he rushed over to help and called 911.
“(The boy) was having troubles breathing so I put him on his side and held his hand,” he said.
“His eyes were just white and he was looking at me like in shock. ... He was clearly…like he was dying.”
The witness went on to say that he was placed on hold for 10 to 15 minutes without an answer and ended up flagging down a passing vehicle to try to get the boy some help at the nearby West Park Healthcare Centre on Emmett Avenue.
“We hailed a car. We got him in the hospital there. I know there’s no emergency there, but 911 wasn’t answering.”
Toronto police, however, told CTV News Toronto that there were “numerous” calls made to the 911 Communication Centre about this shooting on Saturday.
The first call for ‘sound of gunshots’ came into the communication centre at 10:01 p.m. and was in the queue for six minutes and 43 seconds, Stephanie Sayer said, adding that Toronto police and paramedics were on scene by 10:11 p.m.
Sayer added that the victim was taken by EMS from the healthcare facility at 170 Emmett to a trauma centre.
The deadly gunfire rang out just after 10 p.m. on Saturday near Jane Street and Weston Road.
Police say officers arrived at that area minutes later and found a 15-year-od boy with a gunshot wound.
The victim, who has not yet been identified, was taken to the hospital by paramedics, they said, where he was pronounced deceased. He is Toronto’s 14th homicide victim of the year.
Neighbour Glenn Webster told CTV News Toronto that he was watching TV when he heard “three bangs which sounded like stones being thrown at something metal.”
The suspect fled the area before police arrived, they said.
Toronto police have not provided any suspect information at this point, nor have they announced any arrests. They have also not confirmed if this shooting was targeted.
Speaking with reporters at the scene on Sunday, Det. Sgt. Phillip Campbell, of Toronto Police Service, would only say that the investigation is in the early stages, adding that officers are on scene canvassing for video, speaking with witnesses, and gathering evidence.
He assured the public that they’re “dedicating all necessary resources to this investigation to find those responsible.”
“Members of the public who live in this neighbourhood can expect to see an increased police presence as we conduct our investigation,” Campbell said.
Toronto police are asking anyone with information including dashcam or home security footage from the area to contact the Homicide and Missing Persons Unit at 416-808-7400 or Crime Stoppers anonymously.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Allison Hurst
