Two 18-year-olds have been charged with murder following a shooting at the Salsa on St. Clair festival that left two men dead, five other people injured, and rattled the community’s “sense of safety and security,” Toronto’s police chief says.
The two males, identified as Jessiah Massaro-Gill and Lewis Downey, face a combined 37 charges in connection with the daylight shooting, which occurred at the busy street festival at around 8 p.m. on the night of July 11.
Both suspects have been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.
The shooting caused thousands of panicked festival-goers to run for cover and ultimately led organizers to shut down the festival for the rest of the weekend.
Shaquan Quashie, 25, and Cesar Vernaza, 20, were killed and five others were wounded when the shots rang out.
Det.-Sgt. Stacey McCabe said she believes that the two men who were killed were the intended target of the shooting and the other five had “the misfortune of being caught in that” gunfire.
‘An unimaginable traumatic experience’
McCabe said some of the surviving victims sustained “life-altering” injuries.
“All were subjected to an unimaginable traumatic experience,” she said.
Police previously issued an “active shooter” alert in the moments after the gunfire rang out before later saying that there was an exchange of gunfire between two groups at the festival.
On Friday, McCabe said that investigators no longer believe that to be the case either as the evidence suggests that only one weapon was used.
Two other firearms were found at the scene, she said, but it does not appear that they were discharged.
McCabe said despite the fact that only one firearm was used, police have sufficient evidence to charge both suspects with murder and attempted murder.
The investigator would not comment on the relationship between the two accused or their possible connection to the two victims.
“This investigation was exceptionally complex. There were thousands of people at the festival that day, hundreds of hours of video to review, countless witnesses to identity, and interview and significant forensic evidence to analyze,” she said.
The two suspects were arrested on Aug. 5 at separate locations in Toronto and during the execution of search warrants, three firearms were seized. Ballistics testing is being conducted to determine if one of these weapons was the gun used at the July 11 shooting.
Mayor Olivia Chow thanked police for these recent arrests, commenting on how they are keeping Toronto’s communities safe.
“As Toronto comes together for this weekend’s events, we will continue working to make sure everyone can enjoy our city safely,” Chow said in a post on X.
‘Complete disregard for human life’
McCabe said she could not confirm if the incident was gang-related but noted that this characterization “oversimplifies” the complex and concerning problem facing the city.
“This investigation is about gun violence and the willingness of young people to use guns with complete disregard for human life and the safety of anyone around them,” she said.
“Two young men lost their lives, five others were injured, thousands of people who came together to celebrate their community witnessed an act of extraordinary violence.”
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw echoed those comments, calling the shooting “terrifying violence” during what should have been a “celebration of community and culture.”
“What we need to address is the egregious behaviour, which is the willingness of some people to pick up firearms and shoot them off in our public spaces,” he said, calling the incident “deeply unsettling” for members of the community.
“Labelling it... does not address what is at stake here, which is people’s sense of safety and security and we’ve lost two lives. That is what we are dealing with.”
