Toronto police officer shot during robbery investigation | CBC News

A Toronto police officer is in hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries after he was shot Wednesday while investigating a stopped vehicle believed to be involved in robberies.

The shooting happened around 5:30 p.m. near Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue, and the officer was rushed to hospital where he is recovering, police said.

A police source said Thursday that officers with 53 Division’s major crime unit spotted a parked vehicle they believed to be involved in robberies in the area. The officers watched the vehicle for hours as they waited for someone to return to it, the source said.

When it appeared no one was coming, the officers called a tow truck, according to the source. But as they waited for the tow to arrive on scene, several people approached the vehicle, the source said. When the officers attempted to make arrests, gunshots were exchanged and the officer was hit in his abdomen, according to the source.

A suspect who fired on the officers then fled the area, the source said. 

The suspected shooter was arrested later Wednesday evening, police said, while two other suspects were arrested earlier.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the province’s police watchdog, also offered a rough timeline and some details of how the shooting unfolded in a news release Thursday. The SIU is investigating the incident because a police officer fired their weapon at the scene.

The SIU said that while two officers were investigating a robbery, they were approached by two men. 

“One of the men shot an officer and fled,” the release said. “A second officer discharged his firearm at the man who fled. The man was not struck.”

A spokesperson for the Toronto Police Association (TPA) said in an email Thursday morning the injured officer, 29, is in “good spirits” and remains in hospital. The officer has served on the force for five and a half years, they added.

Toronto police Chief Myron Demkiw said the shooting is another example of the dangers officers face in the city.

“This is the 637th time a police officer has been injured in the city of Toronto this year,” Demkiw said outside Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre on Wednesday night.

Demkiw said he was relieved to report the officer is “doing well.”

“He was shot in the abdomen and is here in the hospital surrounded by colleagues and family, being supported during what is obviously a difficult and challenging time,” he said.

Nick Leung, a resident of the area, said he saw the aftermath of the shooting.

“I just saw a cop drive straight up from Redpath [Avenue] and jump out of his vehicle into the laneway and I saw him run straight in. I guess he couldn’t catch the guy, so he ran back out, threw his hands up in frustration,” Leung said.

Politicians at all levels were quick to react to the incident with posts on X.

Mayor Olivia Chow wished the officer a full and quick recovery.

“Frontline officers put themselves in harm’s way everyday, and every officer deserves to go home safe,” she said.

Marco Mendicino, MP for Eglinton-Lawrence, said he was extremely concerned by the news.

“Praying for the officer and all first responders involved,” he said. 

Michael Kerzner, Ontario’s solicitor general, also said his thoughts are also with the officer.

“Violence against police officers is never acceptable,” Kerzner said.