Toronto police said Tuesday night that a string of serious recent shootings in the city, including attacks aimed at the U.S. consulate, synagogues and Jewish schools, was tied to a hired-crime network that recruits 18-year-olds for payment. Police Chief Myron Demkiw said the shooters were contacted through encrypted messaging apps and were paid only after photographing their attacks. He said the common pattern across the cases was that the suspects documented every stage of the crimes. Toronto police are working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the FBI.
Investigators seized a 9 mm handgun that they believe was used in six shootings, and a .45-caliber pistol linked to 21 shootings. Both weapons originally came from the United States. Demkiw said the attacks on synagogues and Jewish schools were part of a repeated method by hired criminals, calling it “a new reality.” He also said the motives behind the financing remain unclear, though there have been reports of foreign involvement and police are still actively investigating.
People familiar with the case said the foreign actors are likely Iran-linked proxies. Court records already identify the shootings outside the U.S. consulate and a synagogue as the work of Muhammad al-Sadi, a commander in the pro-Iranian Hezbollah Brigades, who faces terrorism charges in the United States. The Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs in Canada said the police update should concern every Canadian and that the attackers and those directing them must be brought to justice, calling it a matter of Canadian national security and local life.
The investigation intensified after veteran officer Mark Parnizotto was killed during a raid on a location where suspects were staying, in connection with the consulate shooting in early March 2026. The probe led to arrests and charges, including first-degree murder against 19-year-old Nicholas Bent, who is hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Court filings say Bent is also charged in two other March shootings in Toronto, unlawful weapons possession, and involvement in a shooting at an apartment complex. Eighteen-year-old Sheldon Stewart faces 11 charges, including car theft, illegal weapons possession and firearm discharge. Police also announced charges against 18-year-old Gion Burger, who faces seven counts after shootings in Oakville and at a Toronto business, including possession of a weapon despite a prohibition order. Officers are still searching for 19-year-old Zara Jabi, who remains at large.
