Police survey the scene after shots were fired at the U.S. consulate in Toronto on March 10.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
Police have charged an 18-year-old Toronto man for allegedly shooting at the U.S. consulate in March in an early-morning attack that U.S. investigators had previously tied to a broader terrorism network.
Sheldon Tracy-Stewart faces 11 criminal charges, including discharging a firearm, illegal firearm possession and vehicle theft, according to new court documents that provide additional details on a wider investigation that turned deadly on Thursday when a Toronto police officer was shot and killed during a raid.
Police allege that Mr. Tracy-Stewart fired a handgun at Toronto’s U.S. consulate on March 10, “that was likely to endanger the life” of Consul-General Baxter Hunt. The charges refer to Mr. Hunt as an internationally protected person (IPP), a UN designation for foreign dignitaries that obliges Canada to provide enhanced protection. Under the Criminal Code, anyone who attacks the official premises of an IPP can be imprisoned for up to 14 years.
There were no reported injuries, but investigators said at the time they were treating the case as a national security incident.
The investigation shifted into a new phase on Thursday when police conducted a series of co-ordinated arrests connected to the consulate shooting. During one raid, Constable Marc Pinizzotto, a 43-year-old member of the Emergency Task Force, was shot and killed.
Police have charged 19-year-old Nicholas Bennett with first-degree murder in connection with the officer’s death. Other court documents, filed Thursday, show Mr. Bennett is also facing multiple charges in relation to two additional shooting incidents in March in Toronto, including discharging a firearm at or into locations “knowing or being reckless as to whether another person was present in that place.” As of Thursday, Mr. Bennett was in hospital with multiple gunshot wounds resulting from his interaction from the police.
Raid that left Toronto police officer dead tied to wider shooters-for-hire probe
Thursday’s raid took place on the fourth floor of a high-rise apartment complex at 15 Martha Eaton Way, where Mr. Bennett resided, according to court documents.
Mr. Tracy-Stewart’s charge sheet shows he resided at a different address on the same street in the northwest of the city.
The charge sheet also alleges that he stole a car the same day as the consulate shooting. At the time, witnesses told investigators that they saw two people exit a Honda CR-V and fire a handgun at the building before driving southbound on University Avenue.
The charge sheet does not identify what type of firearm was used in the shooting beyond calling it a handgun that Mr. Tracy-Stewart had no licence to possess.
The documents go on to outline a second set of allegations against him for possessing a handgun with a defaced serial number on June 11, the date of his arrest.
Two separate charges state he violated release orders to refrain from possessing firearms, suggesting he was on bail at the time of the alleged crimes.
In May, the U.S. Justice Department unsealed documents alleging that an an Iraqi national was behind the consulate shooting and had inspired similar attacks around the world.
The Iraqi national, Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, set up an online terrorist organization with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, U.S. prosecutors allege in court documents.
Police survey the scene at the U.S. consulate, on March 10.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
The Americans accuse Mr. Al-Saadi, who is now in the custody of U.S. authorities, of plotting attacks in New York, California and Arizona that were never carried out, while helping co-ordinate several others in Europe in March and April.
He is charged with six terrorism-related offences in the U.S., including conspiring to provide material support to terrorist groups, conspiring to provide material support for acts of terrorism and conspiring to murder nationals of the United States. He also faces several conspiracy charges related to bombing and arson.
As part of the probe, the FBI says it obtained a March 20 audio recording in which Mr. Al-Saadi boasted that his “people” were responsible for attacks in Canada against “the consulate and the Knesset.”
In an affidavit filed in court, FBI special agent Kathryn McDonald said she believes Mr. Al-Saadi was referring to the March 10 consulate attack in Toronto, and that his use of the word “Knesset” refers to an attack on a synagogue, rather than the Israeli parliament. The affidavit does not specify which synagogue she believes was attacked. Police in the Toronto area have been investigating attacks involving shots fired at local synagogues.
Toronto police previously said they did not have evidence linking Mr. Al-Saadi to the U.S. consulate shooting. The RCMP, which oversees national-security investigations, has not replied to requests for more information about the case.
Following the raid in Toronto on Thursday, Toronto police said they were still looking for another suspect, 19-year-old Zara Jabbi, who they said is wanted in connection to the consulate attack. In an e-mail Friday, Toronto police spokesperson Stephanie Sayer confirmed Mr. Zabbi remains at large.
She said she could not provide further details regarding the continuing investigation or about the warrants executed on Thursday. “We expect to share additional information next week,” she said.
The Special Investigations Unit, which examines cases in which civilians are seriously injured or killed by police in Ontario, is investigating the incident.
On Friday, Const. Pinizzotto’s mother posted on Facebook, calling his death a “cruel heartbreak” that has “brought us to our knees.”
“We struggle to find sleep and solace in the darkness as our grief lingers,” she wrote.
In connection with the additional shootings, Mr. Bennett is accused of masking his face and discharging a handgun at a unit of an apartment building in Scarborough on March 25. He is also accused that day of illegally possessing a .45-calibre firearm and breaching a probation order that prohibited him from owning or possessing a weapon.
Another charge sheet relates to a second shooting incident that allegedly took place on March 26 at a Brazilian jiu-jitsu gym in Etobicoke. He is accused of firing a handgun into or at the gym. His charges include illegal possession of a weapon and breaching a probation order.
The gym’s owner told The Globe he was shocked to learn that the same man accused of firing shots at his business is now facing a murder charge for the shooting of a police officer.
Jorge Britto said nobody was injured when someone shot up his gym at around 2 a.m. The gym has a prominent facade along Lake Shore Blvd. West, with posters catering to children and families. Mr. Britto said that children make up about 60 per cent of his clientele.
Investigators found evidence that 10 rounds had been fired at his storefront, he said, smashing the windows and causing about $7,000 of damage.
“To this day we don’t know why someone did this,” he said.
With a report from Colin Freeze