Toronto Police Shoot a Man Dead
- 11 years ago
Toronto police shot a man on a bus multiple times in the torso, he later died in hospital. Police confronted the man on a streetcar on Dundas St. W. near Grace St., west of Bathurst St., just after midnight on Saturday 27 July 2013. A local resident recorded the confrontation. A young woman who lives on Bellwoods Ave. a few houses down from Dundas St. W, witnessed the shooting and said that she heard what sounded like a taser being used after the shots had been fired. Witnesses said the incident started when a man pulled out a knife on the streetcar, and when the driver noticed, he stopped the vehicle and opened the doors. Everyone, including the driver, was off the streetcar shortly afterwards.
Toronto police are facing harsh criticism after a video of officers fatally shooting an 18-year-old man armed with a knife on an empty streetcar. Media reports and friends on social media have identified the slain man as Sammy Yatim, 18. Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit, which investigates deaths and serious injuries involving police, is now leading the probe into what occurred at about 12:15 a.m. Saturday morning on the Dundas streetcar. He was a refuge from war torn Syria. Local resident Martin Baron posted the video of the incident online, tweeting: “To witness a shooting is horrible, but in front of your house?”
The video, shot from at least 10 metres away, shows police surrounding the front door of the streetcar while a solitary figure, wearing white pants, a dark short-sleeve shirt and a ball hat, holds a small object in his hand, near the driver’s seat. Police can be heard yelling, “Drop the knife! Do it now!” A muffled voice can be heard repeatedly saying, “You’re a p—-. You’re a f—– p—-,” although it is not clear who is saying it and who it is directed towards. Police can be heard saying, “Don’t move,” and the man on the streetcar moves in the direction of police, who are several metres away from the entrance, and three shots are fired. The video is slightly obscured but it does not appear the man made it to the streetcar’s front steps.
After a pause of about five seconds, an additional six shots are fired in quick succession. The man is no longer visible in the video. At least 10 police officers can be seen in the video at this time. Police can still be heard yelling, “Drop the knife,” after the shots are fired. About 30 seconds after the first shot a police officer climbs up the steps of the streetcar and the sound of a Taser can be heard. About 10 seconds later, officers enter the streetcar and the video ends shortly afterwards. Yatim was originally from Syria according to his Facebook page. His uncle told the Toronto Sun that he had no history of mental illness. The video of the shooting, uploaded early Saturday morning, outraged many viewers. Among those criticizing Toronto police are city councillor Janet Davis who tweeted: “He was cornered on an empty streetcar.”
Toronto police are facing harsh criticism after a video of officers fatally shooting an 18-year-old man armed with a knife on an empty streetcar. Media reports and friends on social media have identified the slain man as Sammy Yatim, 18. Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit, which investigates deaths and serious injuries involving police, is now leading the probe into what occurred at about 12:15 a.m. Saturday morning on the Dundas streetcar. He was a refuge from war torn Syria. Local resident Martin Baron posted the video of the incident online, tweeting: “To witness a shooting is horrible, but in front of your house?”
The video, shot from at least 10 metres away, shows police surrounding the front door of the streetcar while a solitary figure, wearing white pants, a dark short-sleeve shirt and a ball hat, holds a small object in his hand, near the driver’s seat. Police can be heard yelling, “Drop the knife! Do it now!” A muffled voice can be heard repeatedly saying, “You’re a p—-. You’re a f—– p—-,” although it is not clear who is saying it and who it is directed towards. Police can be heard saying, “Don’t move,” and the man on the streetcar moves in the direction of police, who are several metres away from the entrance, and three shots are fired. The video is slightly obscured but it does not appear the man made it to the streetcar’s front steps.
After a pause of about five seconds, an additional six shots are fired in quick succession. The man is no longer visible in the video. At least 10 police officers can be seen in the video at this time. Police can still be heard yelling, “Drop the knife,” after the shots are fired. About 30 seconds after the first shot a police officer climbs up the steps of the streetcar and the sound of a Taser can be heard. About 10 seconds later, officers enter the streetcar and the video ends shortly afterwards. Yatim was originally from Syria according to his Facebook page. His uncle told the Toronto Sun that he had no history of mental illness. The video of the shooting, uploaded early Saturday morning, outraged many viewers. Among those criticizing Toronto police are city councillor Janet Davis who tweeted: “He was cornered on an empty streetcar.”