Shooting death.
Toronto police were at the scene of a shooting death Friday on Milverton Boulevard in the Coxwell and Danforth area. The province's Special Investigations Unit was called to the incident as well. (Feb. 3, 2012)
Staff photo/ANDREW PALAMARCHUK
The province’s Special Investigations Unit is probing the death of a 29-year-old man who was shot during an altercation with police officers Friday.
The man was shot on Milverton Boulevard, near Coxwell and Danforth avenues, around 10:15 a.m. on Feb. 3. He was taken to St. Michael’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Chad, 37, who didn’t give his surname, said he heard the “loud voice of a police officer telling somebody to stop” outside his house.
Chad said he then saw a man in a hospital gown with a pair of scissors in each hand heading towards the officers.
“He had two hands spread out in front of him with the scissors,” Chad said. “The points of the scissors were downwards, the handles were upwards, and he was walking straight towards the police.”
Chad said three shots were then fired and the man dropped to the ground. He said the man also had what appeared to be a hospital band on his arm.
“What is very troubling and concerning is this person was a psychiatric patient,” Chad said. “This is a school area.”
Toronto East General Hospital spokesperson Angela Pappainni couldn’t comment on whether the man was a TEGH patient. “Because there’s an ongoing investigation, we’re co-operating with police and can’t make any comment at this time,” she said.
The SIU assigned 10 investigators to the case. The civilian agency investigates whenever there is a serious injury or death involving police.
“We’ve got investigators on the scene here interviewing witnesses. We’ve got investigators at the police station interviewing people,” SIU spokesperson Monica Hudon said at the scene.
Officers closed Milverton between Woodington and Glebemount avenues for the investigation.
Anyone with information is asked to call the lead SIU investigator at 416-622-1898.
– with files from Danielle Milley