3 GTA movie theatres evacuated due to unknown substance; police investigating
Posted December 6, 2023 7:15 am.
Last Updated December 7, 2023 11:06 am.
Police are investigating after hundreds of moviegoers were evacuated from three separate theatres in the GTA on Tuesday night following reports of substances being leaked into the buildings.
Peel Regional Police say officers were called to a movie theatre near Great Lakes Drive and Bovaird Drive in Brampton around 7:40 p.m. for reports that a substance was sprayed inside.
The building was evacuated but no arrests were made. Investigators are reviewing video surveillance to determine what exactly happened.
York Regional Police say officers were similarly called to the Cineplex theatre near Highway 7 and Weston Road around 9:30 p.m.
Police confirm around 200 moviegoers needed to be evacuated from the building. Investigators say they believe the incident was an “intentional act” and a criminal investigation is ongoing.
“Investigators learned that two male suspects wearing masks and hoods had attended the cinema, entered the theatre after the movie began and then walked around and sprayed an unknown, aerosol-based, irritating substance into the air. The suspects fled before police arrival,” police said in a release.
Police said several movie-goers started coughing and were treated on scene by paramedics.
Investigators released a security camera image as well as descriptions of the suspects (below):
- Suspect #1 description: Male, Black, light skin tone, 5’10”, medium build, wearing a black sweater, black jacket with a white logo on the front right side, dark pants with a white stripe and a black toque with a white logo on the front, wore a black medical mask
- Suspect #2 description: Male, brown, light skin tone, 5’8″, medium build, wearing a black sweater with a red logo above white text on the front, dark pants, brown boots, Wore a black mask
Police say the movie being shown at the time was an Indian Hindi-language film.
Toronto police also received a call around 10:30 p.m. about a possible “stink bomb” being released in a theatre at Scarborough Town Centre. The theatre was evacuated as officers investigated.
“It is unknown at this time if any other incidents are connected but our investigators are aware of those incidents that took place in York Region and Toronto,” reads a statement from Peel police.
No serious injuries were reported in any of the three incidents and investigators have not been able to determine the exact substance used.
