Woman dead after daytime shooting in Toronto

Toronto police say they do not believe a woman killed in a daylight shooting in Leslieville on Friday was involved in the altercation that led to the gunfire.

Officers were called to the intersection of Queen Street and Carlaw Avenue shortly before 12:30 p.m. on Friday for a reported shooting in the area.

When officers arrived on scene, they located a woman in her 40s suffering from gunshot wounds. She was rushed to a nearby trauma centre but later pronounced dead.

“Prior to the shooting, officers have learned that there were three individuals involved in a verbal and physical altercation at Queen Street and Carlaw. At the time of this altercation, shots were fired and as a result, the female victim was struck by shots,” Duty Insp. Michelle Olszevski told reporters at the scene on Friday afternoon.

Police would not say whether they believe the victim was an innocent bystander.

“It is unknown at this time if there is a relationship between the female and these three individuals. It is not believed that there is but it is still actively being investigated and it has not been confirmed.”

Olszevski said police have “limited suspect descriptions” and do not know how many shooters were involved.

She said at this point, investigators do not have enough information to release suspect descriptions.

“Thankfully we have a lot of witnesses that have come forward and there is a lot of video in this area so we are still actively investigating and reviewing video to confirm descriptions that we will be able to release a later time,” she said.

Police said the suspects were last fleeing the scene eastbound from Carlaw Avenue towards Pape Avenue.

The homicide squad is leading the investigation but Olszevski said the guns and gangs unit, 55 Division officers, and the Toronto Police Service’s forensic identification unit are also on scene assisting with the case.

“This was a Friday afternoon on Queen Street East. (This is a) very busy neighbourhood (with) commuters, pedestrians, streetcars, and vehicles,” she said.

“To anyone who may have seen this incident, have dash cam video, or any video from the storefronts or apartment units above, please contact investigators.”