Peel police make arrests in 2 ‘related’ 2019 Mississauga homicides

Peel regional police have charged two men with conspiracy to commit murder in two separate Mississauga homicides that investigators believe are related.

In the first instance on Sept. 14, 2019, officers were called to Darcel Avenue near Morning Star Drive just before 6:30 p.m. after reports of shots fired at a parkette behind a building complex.

At the time, police described an “ambush-type” attack on a group filming a rap video in the area.

Seventeen-year-old Jonathan Davis was pronounced dead at the scene.

Five others were also shot, including a 13-year-old girl, a 16-year-old boy, two 17-year-old boys and a 50-year-old woman. They were all eventually released from hospital.

Police said the suspects were dressed in dark clothing and balaclavas and approached on foot from the side of a building.

After sneaking up on the group police said they “indiscriminately” fired into the parkette area with semi-automatic handguns.

On Tuesday police released video of the attack, which shows the suspects firing numerous rounds at the group as they desperately try to run from the barrage of bullets.

Police believe up to nine suspects were involved.

Several weeks later on Oct. 22, 2019, officers responded to reports of a shooting near Highway 410 and Derry Road East in Mississauga.

Giovanni Delahaye, 28, of Brampton, was found deceased inside a vehicle at the scene while two others, a man and woman who were in the same vehicle, suffered serious injuries.

According to police, the vehicle containing the three victims was on the ramp and the driver was waiting to make a left turn onto Derry, when another vehicle pulled up and at least one person opened fire.

Police believe two to three people were inside the suspect vehicle at the time.

Investigators further claim that the same vehicle was linked to both shootings, and shell casings from both shootings were matched.

“Through investigation it has been determined that this shooting is related to the previous shooting on Darcel Avenue in Mississauga,” Peel police said in a release on Tuesday.

Two suspects have been arrested for their involvement in both fatal shootings.

On July 16, 2020, Safeer Ahmad, 19, of Mississauga, was arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. On July 19, Jahvon Valdez, 21, of Brampton, turned himself in to Peel police and was also charged with conspiracy to commit murder as well as unauthorized possession of a firearm.

“These egregious acts of violence shocked the community to the core and took Jonathan and Giovanni away from their family and friends,” Chief of Peel Regional Police, Nishan Duraiappah, said in a release.

“Our investigators worked relentlessly, and these arrests are a result of their commitment to ensuring that those responsible for these murders, and for injuring the other victims, are held accountable for their actions.”

With files from The Canadian Press