Toronto police have charged two teenage boys with attempted murder after a student was shot in the chest during a drive-by daytime shooting outside a Toronto high school on Thursday.
Insp. Norman Proctor said two 17-year-old suspects were arrested on Friday morning as police searched a property in the Peel Region.
Police have said males drove into the parking lot of Weston Collegiate Institute around noon and allegedly shot the 15-year-old boy from the vehicle.
“It is alleged that the driver shot the victim multiple times from the vehicle,” Proctor said at a Friday afternoon news conference. “(The) suspects fled and the suspect vehicle was later located in Peel Region.”
Investigators said the Grade 10 student ran back into the school — which was placed into lockdown — and is now in hospital in critical but stable condition.
Proctor said the vehicle used in the lunchtime shooting, a Hyundai Elantra, had been stolen in a carjacking that happened in Peel Region.
“With the assistance of the Peel Regional Police Service, the suspects were identified along with an address of interest,” said Proctor, who added that a loaded firearm was also seized at the location during the execution of the search warrant.
Police said the two suspects do not attend Weston Collegiate Institute, though they did not confirm if they were known to the student who was shot.
They initially told The Canadian Press that the shooting was targeted but later said it was too soon to tell.
The two youths have been charged with a number of offences, Proctor said, including attempted murder, discharging a firearm with intent and possession of property obtained by crime.
“Further charges may be pending depending on where this investigation leads up,” said Proctor, who said police are not aware of any outstanding suspects at this time.
He said the two youths were set to appear in court on Friday afternoon. They cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2023.
