Edward Lake, the father of the three children killed by a drunk driver in 2015, was Tasered and arrested by Peel police before his death.
Peel Regional Police Const. Heather Cannon confirmed to CP24 Wednesday evening that officers interacted with Lake at his home on Sunday. In an e-mail statement, Cannon said police were called to Lake's residence "to investigate an altercation."
Police arrived and became involved in a separate "altercation" with Lake, resulting in a Taser being deployed, Cannon said.
He was subsequently arrested and charged with one count of assault at the scene. Cannon said Lake was later taken to the hospital, where he was assessed and released.
"Officers notified Victim Services of the incident, and Mr. Lake was also provided the contact information," Cannon added.
"Peel Regional Police had no further interaction with Mr. Lake once he was transported to the hospital."
A day after the incident, Lake was reported dead. Multiple media reports said he died by suicide, but CP24 has not independently verified them.
Lake's children – Daniel, Harrison and Milagros Neville-Lake – were killed when drunk driver Marco Muzzo sped through a stop sign and collided with their vehicle in Vaughan. The children's grandfather Gary Neville also died in the crash.
Muzzo was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2016. He was granted full parole in February 2021.
"I am angry that my children never got the chance to grow up," Lake said at Muzzo's parole hearing. "I wake up every day crying. It's scary when you want a hug from your children, and they aren't there."
The children's mother tweeted about Lake's death on Monday night, saying, "My children's father, Edward Lake, has joined our kids so they can play together, forever." Attached is a photo of Lake with his three children.
Peel police said they had previously attended Lake's home but could not share the details due to privacy reasons.
"We are aware of and saddened by Mr. Lake's tragic death, as well as the tragic circumstances that this family has faced," Cannon said.
"While there was no indication that the call was directly related to mental health, the Officers who attended were appropriately made aware of Mr. Lake's history and previous interactions," she added, noting that due to the nature of the call, the Crisis Outreach and Support Team or the Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Team did not respond to it.
Meanwhile, after Lake's death, there were renewed calls for organizations which have received donations from Muzzo's family to remove the name from their facilities.
On Tuesday, two hospitals refused to remove the Muzzo name, with one citing the signage "recognizes the family's long history of philanthropy, including many generous donations."
