Man facing murder charge after fatally shooting home intruder in Milton, lawyer says

A 22-year-old man is facing a murder charge after allegedly shooting at a group of people who broke into his Milton home over the weekend.

Officers were called to a home on Gibson Crescent, near Derry and Tomken roads, around 5 a.m. Sunday for reports of gunshots.

Police say a group of suspects entered the home with an “intent on committing a robbery” when they were confronted by a man inside before a number of shots were fired.

One suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. A second suspect, along with a man who resides at the home, was taken into police custody.

The lawyer representing 22-year-old Ali Mian says his client lives at the home with his single mother. Mian is facing a second-degree murder charge.

Criminal lawyer Jag Virk argues his client should not be charged with murder for shooting “at an intruder that broke into his home and attacked his mother.”

“He is a registered firearm owner and used his gun legally against an armed intruder,” Virk said in a statement to CityNews. “His intention was not to kill the intruder; he only shot at him once.”

Police said the incident was isolated to the residence and appeared to be targeted.

Romario Clarke, 20, from Oshawa, is facing two charges, including breaking and entering and possessing an illegal firearm. Both arrested men are scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday.

Investigators have yet to identify the deceased person and are still searching for three suspects who fled in a white vehicle, believed to be a Dodge Charger with a sunroof and black wheels. Halton police have released a photo of the car in the hopes someone will be able to identify it.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the police.

Toronto lawyer ‘bothered’ by murder charge laid in incident

Toronto legal expert and lawyer Ari Goldkind said he is surprised the charge of second-degree murder was laid in this incident.

“We know that reasonable self-defence is still allowed in this country. I’m really surprised by this murder charge and a bit bothered by it.”

Goldkind was also interested that the man’s lawyer has shared his defence publicly.

“He better be right about that because if the police have much more information in their file, there could be consequences for getting so much so wrong. Police often will charge or overcharge somebody at the beginning, and they’ll say to themselves words to the effect of we’ll let the courts or the Crown attorneys figure it out.”

“I’m not a fan of that. The police could have waited here, depending on what they know. We only know what his lawyer has told us … It begs the question of what was the haste to charge this young man with murder,” Goldkind said

Goldkind called it “a unique set of circumstances,” and he anticipates more information will be available in the coming days.

“Perhaps the Halton police force knows a lot more than we do, which is likely the case. But still, to me, there seems to be a rush to judgment.”