Gunmen who opened fire on five men in an Etobicoke parking lot on Sunday killed an innocent man loved by his family, his wife said on Tuesday.
“You have no idea what you have done to us and what you are putting us through,” Heather Parkes, wife of homicide victim Delroy “George” Parkes, 61, said she would tell the shooters.
“Turn yourself in. Just turn yourself in. It’s not fair,” she added. “Our world was taken from us for no reason… I want justice.”
Heather said she never had a chance to say goodbye to her husband.
A friend of Parkes called Heather from the parking lot after the shooting. She said she could hear her husband moaning and saying he was not going to make it, but she was not able to talk to him. The family went to the crime scene but was told by police that he had been taken to the hospital, where he died.
The couple had been together for 30 years, married for 15.
Toronto police identified Parkes, formerly of Woodstock, Ont., as having been killed in Sunday’s shooting at the North Albion Collegiate Institute parking lot, near the corner of Mount Olive Drive and Kipling Avenue.
Four other people were wounded in the mass shooting. Officers were called to the scene shortly before 11 p.m.
Police said the four other victims have a mix of either life-altering or non-life-threatening injuries.
Group gathered after a soccer game, police say
In the news release, police said a group of men were gathered there after a soccer game when a dark pickup truck pulled into the parking lot.
Two suspects then got out and shot at the men before taking off in the truck, police said.
Jaidyn Parkes the victim’s daughter, said her father was a good man who was loved by everybody.
“My dad was my world and my bestest friend after my mom,” Jaidyn, 23, told reporters.
“He was a leader in any community we were in. Everyone called him Uncle George because he was everyone’s family. If there was two young guys that were going to argue, if he went and said, ‘No, this is not the way,’ they would stop. You respected what he said,” she said.
Toronto police have identified a man who died after five people were shot in an Etobicoke high school parking lot on Sunday. CBC’s Greg Ross spoke to family members of the victim.
“He was a man of God, a man of faith, and a man of love,” she continued.
“He’d let everyone into our home. If you needed help, he was there for you. If it was the last dollar in his pocket, he would give it to you. He wouldn’t see anyone go hungry, go homeless or anything. He was a pillar for anybody and everybody.”
Jaidyn said her dad will not be able to see her graduate from Toronto Metropolitan University on June 11, when she will receive her bachelor of social work degree.
“But I’m going to walk that stage and honour him and do it for my dad because that’s what he would want. And I’m so sad that he won’t be here to watch me.”
In a GoFundMe page, Jaidyn said her father “was a beautiful human being who loved his family deeply.”
His passions included playing soccer and dominoes with his friends every night, she added.
“My father cherished his wife, children, and grandchildren more than words can express… Our hearts are broken, and our lives have been forever changed.”
Police still searching for suspects
Investigators are still searching for suspects and are asking for members of the public to come forward if they have any information.
Students speaking outside the school Tuesday said they weren’t shocked by gun violence in the area.
“Really I’m not surprised, or scared that it would happen to me … most of it is targeted,” said Grade 11 student Manthan Nagar.
Adi Malek, another Grade 11 student, said many students are talking about what happened.
“Everyone is sad,” he said.
“It’s not good to know that something like that happened here.”
Toronto police told CBC News Tuesday there will be an increased officer presence in the area as a result of the shooting, including a command post.