A national charity is offering a $50,000 reward for the arrest of a man alleged to be the final outstanding suspect in a gunfight in Scarborough last June that left two young sisters shot in a playground.
The children, ages five and nine, were at a playground on Alton Towers Circle, near McCowan Road and McNicoll Avenue, on the evening of June 14, 2018 when they were shot.
The girls were rushed to hospital and treated for serious injuries. Their mother told CTV News Toronto that one her daughters tried to sprint away from the gunfire but lamented that she wasn’t fast enough and was struck in the leg.
The five-year-old who was shot asked if she was going to die as paramedics rushed her to the hospital.
Both girls survived but are traumatized by the incident.
Officers said at the time that 11 small children were in the park at the time of the shooting.
Investigators previously said that they believed the intended target of the shooting was a man who was at the park at the time.
Three men have already been arrested in connection with the shooting.
The fourth man, identified as T’Quan Robertson, 23, is wanted for attempted murder, discharging a firearm with intent, and two counts of aggravated assault.
“We’re not looking for witnesses, or people to testify, this case is ready to go to trial,” Deputy Chief Peter Yuen told reporters on Tuesday.
“I’m very confident someone knows where Mr. Robertson is, and we need them to come forward.”
Yuen added that investigators believe Robertson is somewhere in the province. He was profiled in a YouTube video about hip hop filmed one day before the shooting as going by the rap name “Top Gunna.”
With the help of the BOLO (Be on lookout) program, seven billboards with Roberston’s image will be put up in Toronto Tuesday.
The BOLO program is also paying for a truck with a digital display board to drive around neighbourhoods “identified by lead investigator in the case” in a bid to possibly coax those in contact with Robertson to give him up or encourage him to surrender, program director Maxime Langlois said.
The program, funded by the Stéphan Crétier Foundation, has expanded to other Canadian cities, with limited success.
Langlois says that from its inception in 2018 to April of this year, the BOLO program elicited 200 tips from the public across Canada, but could not be credited with any arrests.
“No campaigns have led to an arrest yet, this is what we’re hoping for. We’re in this game for a long run,” Langlois said.
The BOLO campaign will also circulate Robertson’s information via promoted posts on Instragram, Facebook and Twitter.
The reward can be claimed up until Dec. 25, 2019.
