Man dead, 4 others seriously injured in Etobicoke shooting

A man in his 60s who was shot and killed in the parking lot of an Etobicoke school on Sunday night was with a group of friends socializing after playing soccer when two suspects jumped out of a vehicle and opened fire, police revealed on Monday.

Four others were also hit by bullets, with one of them suffering what police called “life-altering” injuries. They all remain in hospital.

Police responded to a call in the area of Mount Olive Drive and Kipling Avenue near North Albion Collegiate Institute at approximately 10:53 p.m. for reports of a shooting.

Toronto police and medics quickly arrived on scene and located five injured people — all men between the ages of 40 and 60.

In a Monday morning update, Detective Sergeant Phillip Campbell said two suspects wearing dark clothing jumped out of a black or dark-coloured newer model pickup truck and opened fire.

A motive has not been determined, and Campbell couldn’t say if the deceased man was being specifically targeted.

“From what I understand it’s just a group of men that were gathering after playing soccer in the afternoon,” he said. “Really just socializing, enjoying the fresh air. We think maybe there were 15 to 20 people (at the scene at the time.)

Campbell said there’s no evidence to suggest anyone from the group at the school returned fire.

“I don’t believe it was a shootout,” he said. “I believe it was one-sided.”

Homicide victim identified as devoted husband, father

One woman who asked not to be identified knows the group of men who were playing soccer at the high school. She tells CityNews the 61-year-old male victim who lost his life, identified as Delroy “George” Parkes, is part of her extended family.

“By the time they tried to help him, to get back to life, he was able to just call [his wife] on the phone and say he was gone,” she said in an interview. “He was a wonderful soul. All you get is a smile. He loved life.”

Nearby residents tell 680 NewsRadio that the male victim often hung out in the high school’s parking lot during the summer.

“Every night, even myself. We [would] go there to play dominoes or have barbecues. We have soccer matches there,” one resident said.

North Albion Collegiate Institute and the on-site daycare were closed on Monday but reopened on Tuesday.

Police couldn’t confirm if the fatal shooting was connected to two other shootings in Etobicoke over the weekend that investigators said were random.

In those cases, Supt. Ron Tavener said a 20-year-old man and a 14-year-old boy were both randomly shot.

When asked if there was a possible link between all three shootings, Taverner would only say, “Everything is a consideration right now.”