Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit is investigating the death of a 19-year-old man who was found dead early Nov. 3 inside a student residence at the University of Toronto Mississauga campus.
Peel Regional Police said officers responded to the residence near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road shortly after 9 p.m. on Nov. 2 following reports of an armed individual.
Officers confronted the man outside the residence, but he went back inside, according to police. A gunshot was later heard while officers were outside the residence.
Police attempted to communicate with the man for several hours before entering the unit and finding him dead at approximately 1:30 a.m. from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Peel police Const. Tyler Bell told reporters Nov. 3 that officers had been searching for the man following an alleged intimate partner violence incident in Brampton earlier that afternoon.
Bell said police received a 911 call at about 3 p.m. after the man allegedly assaulted a woman. The woman suffered injuries, and a firearm was reportedly involved.
Officers identified the suspect and were attempting to locate him when they received the call about an armed individual at the university residence.
“We quickly connected the dots between that location and this location and the suspect,” Bell said. “That’s why our response was very heavy to get here to prevent the possibility of a mass casualty situation.”
Bell said officers determined that no one else was inside the residence with the man and tried to negotiate a peaceful resolution.
Police evacuated several nearby residences, while other students left on their own. Authorities also issued a shelter-in-place order for people in the area.
Bell said investigators had no indication that the man was a university student or otherwise affiliated with the institution. Police believe he was visiting someone associated with the residence, although the nature of that relationship remains under investigation.
Police confirmed that officers did not fire their service firearms during the incident. They did, however, discharge ARWEN less-lethal weapons, which fire projectiles and can produce sounds similar to gunfire.
Special Investigations Unit (SIU) spokesperson Kristy Denette said preliminary information indicated that the man died from a single self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police fired more than 20 less-lethal projectiles during the operation, she said.
“I don’t have information about other gunshots at this time,” Denette told reporters, adding that investigators were still examining the circumstances.
Denette said officers were outside the residence when they heard the gunshot, while the man was inside an upstairs bedroom.
The SIU invoked its mandate because Peel police officers were at or near the scene when the man died. The agency assigned four investigators and two forensic investigators to the case.
Investigators are collecting physical evidence, interviewing witnesses and reviewing surveillance and cellphone footage. Denette said a post-mortem examination was scheduled for Nov. 4.
Bell also criticized members of the public who posted photographs showing officers’ positions during the incident, warning that such images could compromise police operations and endanger officers or potential hostages.
“It’s not uncommon in situations where we have barricaded suspects to resort to online means to determine the location and tactics of officers to gain an advantage or the means of their escape,” Bell said.
He praised the university and campus police for quickly notifying students and helping officers contain the situation.
The SIU said no other injuries were reported during the university incident and there was no ongoing threat to public safety.
The agency investigates incidents involving police in Ontario that result in death or serious injury, allegations of sexual assault, or the discharge of a firearm at a person.
