Toronto Police have charged a 14-year-old boy in connection to a mass shooting in Etobicoke that claimed the lives of two men, and left others injured.
The boy, who can’t be named because he’s a youth, is facing two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder, police confirmed on Monday.
Investigators say five people were found shot in the Mount Olive Drive and Kipling Avenue area near North Albion Collegiate Institute at approximately 11 p.m. on Sunday, June 2, after two people jumped out of a dark pickup truck and opened fire.
The second suspect remains at large.
The victims were transported to a local hospital where Delroy “George” Parkes, 61, was pronounced dead.
A second man, Seymour Gibbs, 46, died a few days later in hospital.
Police said the victims were socializing after playing soccer together when they were shot at.
“From what I understand, it’s just a group of men gathering after playing soccer in the afternoon,” Det.-Sgt. Phillip Campbell said at the time. “Just socializing, enjoying the fresh air. We think maybe there were 15 to 20 people (at the scene at the time).”
Gibbs, a father of six who played on the North Kipling Soccer team, died after he was shot in the legs several times and underwent a surgery.
“I just can’t believe [it], we talked last night,” Gibbs’ mother-in-law told CityNews, adding he was talking and laughing the day prior to his surgery. “He was just an innocent guy, and they [took] him away.”
“I hope they catch those guys before they take an innocent life again.”
“My dad was the best person ever,” said Parkes’ daughter in an interview with CityNews. “He was a beautiful human being. He was kind and genuine. He was a man of faith.”
“He was loved by everybody. Everybody called him Uncle George because he was an uncle, a father, a friend to everyone,” she said.
“If he had a dollar in his pocket and you were hungry, he would give you that dollar. They were all hard-working men. Fathers, grandfathers, husbands. They all woke up every day, went to work, went home, ate dinner with their families and then came out to play soccer.”
More to come
With files from Lucas Casaletto and Meredith Bond