Humi
Prime Minister (20k+ posts)

The deadly weekend shooting rampage at the landmark Eaton Centre was not likely gang related, Toronto police said Monday.
Christopher Husbands, 23, of Toronto, turned himself in early Monday and faces one count of first-degree murder and six counts of attempted murder, said Det. Sgt. Brian Borg, the lead investigator in the case.
Husbands is known to police and at the time of the shooting, was under house arrest for a previous charge, Borg revealed at a news conference.
There are indications that Husbands and the 24-year-old man who died in Saturday's shooting, who police have said was believed to have gang ties, knew each other, Borg added.
Regardless, Borg said, "I do not believe that this is a gang-motivated homicide. I believe there's personal aspects involved."
The shooting at the shopping centre also left six people wounded and a pregnant woman needed hospital treatment after she was trampled.
Two people remain in hospital, including a 13-year-old boy from Port Hope, Ont. Connor Stevenson was enjoying an afternoon going to a movie with his mom and older sister when they got caught up in the bloody food court mayhem.
Stevenson was in fair condition Monday, said a spokeswoman with Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, who also released a statement from the boy's parents.
"After complicated neurosurgery, we are happy to say that he is doing well, all things considered; he is alert and talking," the statement said.
"It will be a long healing process, but we are optimistic that he will recover."
Police announced the arrest in a tweet shortly be fore 7 a.m. Monday.
http://www.thespec.com/news/ontario...ng-news-arrest-made-in-eaton-centre-shootings
The downtown Toronto mall reopened its doors Monday morning for the first time since a man - who police say was targeted - was killed and six others wounded..
Mall security guards removed yellow police tape and unlocked doors to entrances shortly before 6 a.m. to allow people to access Queen and Dundas subway stations through the mall.
Stores will reopen at their usual times later in the morning. The food court will re-open Tuesday.
Police have identified the man shot dead in Saturdays bloody melee at the Eaton Centre as Ahmed Hassan, a 24-year-old Toronto man believed to have gang ties. Detective Sergeant Brian Borg, the lead homicide investigator also said surveillance cameras have been extremely fruitful in identifying the person that we believe is responsible for the shooting.
But he refused to disclose any description of the suspect, offering few details on the investigation, such as the type of weapon used and how the shooter escaped the crowded Eaton Centre. It is believed, however, that there was no exchange of gunfire there was one gun and one shooter, Borg told a press conference Sunday afternoon.
PHOTO GALLERY: Eaton Centre shooting
Whether this is a gang-motivated shooting has not been definitely determined, but I can say that it closely being looked at given that at least one of the victims has known gang associations, Borg said.
He said another victim, a 23-year-old man who suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the neck and chest and remains hospitalized in critical condition, may also have gang ties.
Hassan, who died from multiple gunshot wounds, is known to police. Autopsy results are expected to be released later Sunday.
Hassan, the 21st homicide victim in Toronto this year, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Acting deputy police Chief Jeff McGuire insisted that police are progressing with the investigation.
One idiot with a gun on a Saturday afternoon in downtown Toronto does not speak to the state of affairs in the city of Toronto, he told the press conference. This has an incredible ability to create fear and angst among people, but were here to tell you were investigating very carefully.
Hassan was shot dead just before 6:20 p.m. Saturday inside the food court at the crowded downtown mall, sending hundreds of panicked people trampling each other and scrambling for the exits.
Further details also emerged about a 13-year-old boy, who was whisked to hospital Saturday in critical condition after suffering a gunshot wound to the head.
The boy, who was visiting from out of town, is in critical, but stable condition, police said.
He was one of six people shot and wounded during the fracas, which started just before 6:20 p.m. with a barrage of gunfire.
Another shooting victim has been identified as 23-year-old Tasnia Mahmood, a recent graduate from Torontos George Brown College.
Mahmood, who was shot in the right leg, is expected to be released from hospital early this afternoon.
A 28-year-old pregnant woman went into labour after she was knocked down in the stampede of people slipping and falling on discarded food and bags.
The woman was released Sunday afternoon without having the baby, according to St. Michaels Hospital spokesperson Cyndy DeGiufti, who couldnt say how many months pregnant the woman was.
Meanwhile, the Eaton Centre will remain closed all day Sunday as police conduct their ongoing investigation.
Representatives from the coroners office arrived at the mall around 5 a.m. Sunday to pick up Hassans body, which was in the mall overnight. It was carried out of the Eaton Centre on a stretcher and loaded into a grey van around 7:15 a.m.
The Eaton Centre remained heavily guarded Sunday afternoon as dozens of officers roamed the stretch of Yonge St. in front of the mall, some guarding the entranceways as others foot patrolled the nearby area.
An officer at the scene said police were returning abandoned bags and purses to shoppers who fled the mall after the shooting.
Toronto's Carol Bigwood, who was near the food court when the shots rang out, returned to the mall Sunday to pick up photographs, but was turned away by police.
Bigwood said she was sipping lemonade with her granddaughter Saturday evening when she saw people running "like a herd of deer." She had not heard the gunfire, but left the mall when police came running and ordered her out.
While a statement issued by the Eaton Centres owner and manager, Cadillac Fairview, said the mall and its parking lot will be closed until further notice, a security guard manning the parking garage Sunday afternoon said the lot was open for shoppers to pick up their cars abandoned Saturday night.
Only about four people had returned to the mall to retrieve their vehicles by 1 p.m. Sunday, he said.
At the Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays were hosting the Boston Red Sox Sunday, a moment of silence was held for shooting victims before the singing of the national anthems.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a statement, saying he was shocked and saddened about the attack.
Canadians should be assured that such depraved and monstrous acts will be met with the full force of the law, he said.
I have every confidence that the Toronto Police will bring the criminal or criminals responsible for this senseless act to justice.
On Mayor Rob Fords Sunday radio show, his brother, Councillor Doug Ford, said his wife and kids were at the Eaton Centre at the time of the shooting.
We will catch the person responsible for this horrific, cowardly crime, the mayor said.
With files from Niamh Scallan, Raveena Aulakh, Graham Slaughter and Curtis Rush
Torstar News