9 arrested in kidnapping of Toronto woman at Mississauga nightclub

A Peel Regional Police badge is seen here in this undated photo.

Nine people have been arrested in connection with the alleged kidnapping of a woman from a Mississauga nightclub back in August, Peel Regional Police say.

According to police, a Toronto woman visited a nightclub in the area of Britannia Road East and Dixie Road on the night of Aug. 24 and shortly before 9 p.m., she was kidnapped and forced into a stolen vehicle. Peel police said the woman was taken to several locations in Owen Sound before being released in the Toronto area about 48 hours later.

The woman, police said, was not physically injured.

On Tuesday, police confirmed that nine people have been arrested in connection with the alleged incident and a Canada-wide warrant has been issued for another person who has yet to be apprehended.

Kidnapping charges have been laid against 28-year-old Newmarket man Mohammed Habibnia, 20-year-old Mississauga man Mohamed Khairy, 22-year-old Concord, Ont. resident Daniel Gonthcharov, 22-year-old Mississauga resident Mohamad Halimi, Aaron Marshall, a 35-year-old man of no fixed address, 31-year-old Meaford resident Jessica Proctor, Tayshawn Atkins, a 19-year-old Oakville resident, and 46-year-old Darren McCann, of Owen Sound.

Mohammed Salih, a 26-year-old Mississauga man, has been charged with accessory after the fact to commit an indictable offence.

Karim Khairy, a 22-year-old man from Mississauga, is also wanted in connection with the investigation.

Police have not released any information about a possible motive for the kidnapping.

“Search warrants were executed at several residences and vehicles in Owen Sound and throughout the Greater Toronto Area. Nearly $240,000 worth of drugs and two extended handgun magazines with ammunition were seized,” Peel police said in a news release issued Tuesday.

The investigation, Peel police confirmed, was carried out with the assistance of the Ontario Provincial Police, York Regional Police, Halton Regional Police, Owen Sound Police, Hanover Police, and West Grey Police.