Toronto officer killed as probe widens over consulate shooting and possible terror links
Toronto police are investigating whether the killing of Constable Marc Pinizzotto during a dawn search in the city's west is connected to a wider network of shootings and possible international terror links. Pinizzotto, 43, a member of the emergency task force, was shot on Thursday while officers were executing search warrants linked to a number of incidents, including an early-March attack on the United States consulate in Toronto. Police said the operation involved several warrants and that the case is now being examined alongside other shootings in the city.
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Toronto police chief Myron Demkiw said the March consulate attack involved two gunmen who opened fire at the building, but no one was injured and the suspects fled in a white vehicle. A police source said investigators are looking at whether the shooters are part of a broader city-wide network of hired gunmen that has targeted buildings owned by a large waste management company and private homes. The same source said officers are also considering whether the case could be linked to a global terror network that has threatened retaliation over US attacks on Iran.
The investigation has taken on added significance because of the possible overlap between local violent crime and international extremism. In May, US authorities charged Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, an Iraqi national, with terrorism, alleging he was behind nearly 20 attacks in Europe. Court documents cited in the row suggest he also claimed responsibility for the Toronto consulate shooting, and prosecutors have alleged that a previously unknown group called Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia worked with Iran's Revolutionary Guard to attack US- and Israel-linked targets.
The RCMP did not respond to questions about any possible connection, although RCMP officers were present during the morning search. The death of a serving officer has also intensified scrutiny of a series of violent incidents that investigators say may be connected. Toronto and surrounding communities have in recent years seen escalating attacks on tow truck companies, including high-profile murders and allegations of police corruption, and investigators suspect the same shooters could have ties to some of those cases.
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The consulate shooting had already drawn attention because it involved a diplomatic site, and the new fatality has raised the stakes for the wider inquiry. What remains unclear is the exact sequence of events during the search, including how Pinizzotto was shot and what evidence was recovered. Police have not said whether the suspect in hospital custody will face charges, and another suspect remains at large.
Investigators are still working to establish whether the Toronto cases are part of a local criminal network, a broader terror-linked operation, or both, and further official updates are expected as the search continues.
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