The Raptors—and Drake—drove through hoards of screaming, adoring fans who wore their favorite Raptors gear and clamored for a glimpse of the famous sports figures. It was a cheerful, light-hearted afternoon until gunshots rang out in the crowd. Original reports stated that one person was injured, but NPR now says that emergency responders tended to the wounds of four individuals.
Thankfully, none of the injuries reported were life-threatening and the four people were treated at local hospitals. According to police, they were able to quickly identify and arrest three suspects in connection with the shooting. “We do have people arrested with firearms, and that’s the start of the investigation,” Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders told reporters. He then asked witnesses to come forward with any information. The motivation behind the shooting was not revealed.
When the gunshots rang out, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Toronto Mayor John Tory, and Raptors players were onstage. Sportscaster Matt Devlin was hosting the event and alerted the crowd that something serious had happened. “I want to make sure everyone stays calm,” Devlin said. “This is serious. Everyone stay calm…There is an emergency being dealt with.” Andrew Singh, a witness, said “we just saw the girl drop to the floor and the guy running off,” Singh told the AP. “All I heard was, ‘bop bop bop.'”
Leave a Reply