Nicholas Maronese
Editor-in-Chief
The Village neighbourhood south of York University was awash with police officers after a suspect in a vehicle struck a police car near Murray Ross Parkway and fled into a nearby house Sept. 21.
Sergeant Stephen Craddock of Toronto Police Services 31 Division said the suspect has not been apprehended and that, as of Sept. 28, police are still trying to identify him.
According to Constable Tony Vella, a command post was set up in the area some time after 10:30 p.m. the night of the incident and several officers from 31 Division’s emergency task force and canine units were deployed to the scene. Vella said that officers were attempting to stop the car but the driver refused to pull over. After running into a police car with his vehicle, the suspect fled on foot and police lost sight of him.
Many community members were confused about the sudden unexplained police presence in their neighbourhood and made posts to Twitter, seeking information. Others took photos and videos of the search.
Timothy Todd, a fourth-year York student who lives on Mansur Terrace in the Village, said that police blocked off access to his street, and that he saw officers asking his neighbours to remain indoors.
“One of the police officers had a megaphone,” he recounted. “They were going around one building and going, ‘We know you’re in there. We have the building surrounded, there is no effective means of escape.’”
