Police authorities have confirmed five people killed and another injured in a shooting in the suburbs of the Canadian city of Toronto on Sunday.
Local police chief Jim MacSween told reporters that the shooting occurred in an apartment building, adding that the suspect also died after an exchange of fire with law enforcement agents.
MacSween revealed that the injured persons were taken to hospital and their life is not in danger.
He explained that the police were called to the site early Sunday evening, saying “Once the officers arrived, they were met with… a horrendous scene where numerous victims were deceased”.
Police authorities said they are investigating the motive and whether there was a connection between the victims and the male suspect, who has not been named.
The police disclosed that the suspect allegedly acted alone, while the victims were found in different apartments in the building, which is located in Vaughan, in the suburbs about 30 kilometers north of Toronto.
Residents were reportedly evacuated immediately while dozens of ambulances and police officers were at the scene in the evening.
While Canada suffers far fewer mass shootings than its American neighbor, it has experienced a surge in gun violence, which has prompted it to recently legislate to ban handguns.
In April 2020, about 22 people were killed by a gunman disguised as a policeman in the eastern province of Nova Scotia, being Canada’s worst mass shooting.
Also, in September this year, 11 people were killed by a man who also stabbed 18 others, mainly in an isolated indigenous community in Saskatchewan province.
Firearms-related violent crimes account for less than three percent of all violent crimes in Canada but since 2009, the per capita rate of guns being fired with the intention of killing or inflicting injuries has increased five-fold.
Canada also banned 1,500 types of military-grade or assault-style firearms in May 2020, days after the Nova Scotia shooting.
