Three officers believed to have discharged firearms in shooting death of Sammy Yatim’s friend

By News Staff

Three officers are believed to have discharged their firearms in the fatal shooting of a 21-year-old man in a North York park on Sunday, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) tells CityNews.

The actions of the three officers are being probed, and 15 witness officers will be part of the investigation.

The deceased man’s family identified him as Alex Wettlaufer, 21.

His sister told 680 NEWS Wettlaufer was a close friend with Sammy Yatim, whose life also ended in a hail of police bullets.

In Sunday’s incident, Toronto police were initially called to the Leslie subway station around 11 p.m. for reports of two people fighting, one armed with a gun.

One of the men ran to Villaways Park, near Leslie Street and Sheppard Avenue East.

The SIU would only say that a “confrontation” ensued, and police opened fire.

The man suffered two gunshot wounds – one to the chest and the other to the abdomen. He was rushed to hospital without vital signs around 12:30 a.m. where he was later pronounced dead.

The SIU is an arm’s length agency that investigates reports involving police where there has been death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault.

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