The Toronto Police Service says incidents of gun crime, whether shootings where someone is struck or a discharge of gunshots, have jumped nearly 74 per cent compared with the previous year.
“This figure includes both shootings which results in the deaths or injuries of people, and firearm discharges where evidence of gunfire such as bullet holes or casings that are found but no injuries are reported,” Deputy Chief Rob Johnson said at a press conference on Thursday.
Johnson did note that 2023 saw an “unusually low” number of shootings.
“This was an outlier,” he said.
He said when it comes to gun crime with death and injury (excluding discharges), 2024 is consistent with the past several years but shows an increase compared with 2023.
So far in 2024, Johnson said there have been 24 shootings resulting in death.
For comparison, 2023 saw nine shooting deaths so far by this time, while 2022 had 24, 2021 had 17 and 2020 had 21.
When it comes to the age of suspects involved in shootings, Johnson said it is troubling to find many are just teenagers.
“It’s troubling,” he said. “What drives a 14-, 15-, 16-year-old kid to pick up a firearm and then use it.”
Meanwhile, Staff Supt. Joe Matthews said over the past six months, Toronto and the GTA have seen an increase in criminal activity surrounding a small segment of the tow truck industry.
This includes shootings and firearms discharges, arsons and mischief targeting tow truck companies, their vehicles and their drivers, Matthews said.
Since Jan. 1, Matthews said there have been 26 tow truck shootings and firearm discharges representing about 12 per cent of the overall number of shootings in Toronto.
Matthews noted that the activity has primarily occurred in Toronto’s east end, with a few other incidents scattered throughout the city.
In April and May, Matthews said there were nine truck arsons, seven of them in the east end.
“Towing conflicts in the GTA have historically been about territorial disputes and rivalries,” Matthews said. “However, it’s important to reiterate that this issue involves a very, very small segment of the towing industry.”