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Police officers work at the scene of a shooting at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto, Monday.Arlyn McAdorey/Reuters
Toronto Police are investigating a shooting near the U.S. consulate, the second alleged incident close to the building this year.
Police said in a post on X that officers heard a firearm being discharged at 4:46 a.m. on Monday in the area of the American diplomatic office, located at 360 University Ave.
Police said evidence of the shooting was found outside the consulate, and a white sedan was seen fleeing the scene. There are no suspects or reported injures from the shooting, they wrote in the post.
University Avenue at Dundas Street was closed to vehicles and pedestrians for several hours.
Monday’s shooting marks the second time a shooting happened near the U.S. consulate.
Last month, police arrested and charged two men accused of shooting the building earlier this year, tying them to a larger gun-for-hire network.
On March 10, police allege Zara Jabbi and co-accused Sheldon Tracey-Stewart stole an SUV, drove to the U.S. Consulate and shot at the building multiple times before ditching the vehicle.
Mr. Jabbi is facing six charges, including vehicle theft and attacking the “premises of Internationally Protected Persons,” which has a penalty of up to 14 years in prison under the Criminal Code. An internationally protected person is a UN designation for foreign dignitaries. Canada is obliged to provide them with enhanced protection.
Mr. Tracey-Stewart is facing 11 charges, including vehicle theft, illegal firearm possession and discharging a firearm.
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Police work the scene of a shooting outside the U.S. Consulate in Toronto, Monday. There are no suspects or reported injures.Sammy Kogan/The Canadian Press
The allegations against them have not been tested in court.
U.S. prosecutors and the FBI have previously linked the consulate shooting to Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, an alleged Iraqi terrorist with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He was arrested in Turkey in May and remains in U.S. custody.
Toronto police have not confirmed any connection between Mr. Al-Saadi and the attacks in the city.