Toronto police say they believe an unidentified suspect who shot and killed a 31-year-old father in November 2022 also attempted to shoot and kill a second man in the same Scarborough parking lot four months later.
Speaking at a news conference on Friday morning, Det.-Sgt. Sajeev Nair provided an update on the murder of 31-year-old Ding Ping Wang, saying that as a result of tips from the public after a news conference last month, police now have the first name of the suspect, who goes by “Jay.”
Wang was fatally shot while sitting in his car in the parking lot of a plaza in the area of Midland and Passmore avenues on the evening of Nov. 12, 2022.
Last month, police released surveillance footage from the scene that was captured the day before the homicide. The video, police said, showed the man they believe to be responsible for the shooting walking through the plaza on Nov. 11.
He told reporters that the footage indicates the suspect conducted “reconnaissance” of the area before carrying out the shooting and followed the exact same path he took on the day of the murder.
Nair previously said he believes Wang was targeted but the motive remains unclear.
“Mr. Wang was a husband, he was a father. He owned a kitchen cabinet business and worked hard to support his family and build a future for them,” Nair said at the July 28 news conference.
“He was not involved in gangs. He was not living a high-risk criminal lifestyle. He was simply going about his day when his life was taken from him.”
Nair said Friday that more tips have poured in from the public over the past two weeks. As a result, he said officers are now able to link the same suspect to an attempted murder in the same plaza parking lot on March 10, 2023.
Video of the incident, which was released by police on Friday, shows a man exiting a black SUV before opening fire at a white Toyota truck that speeds away from the scene.
Nair said he believes the shootings are separate incidents but investigators will remain open to all possible connections.
An artist rendering of the suspect was also released by police last month in an attempt to identify the person responsible.
“If you know someone who goes by the name Jay and believe he may be the person in the footage released by investigators, please come forward and help us solve this case for Mr. Wang’s family and loved ones who have been waiting year for answers,” Nair said on Friday.
“To Jay, if you are watching, we know more about you today than we did two weeks ago. I told you last time that your world was going to get smaller. Today it is going to get even smaller.”
