Police recover 2 vehicles connected to fatal shooting of innocent bystander at Hamilton bus stop

Hamilton police say they’ve recovered two vehicles they believe were involved in the fatal shooting of an innocent bystander at a bus stop on Thursday.

Harsimrat Randhawa, 21, was struck by a bullet moments after stepping off a city bus in the Upper James Street and South Bend Road area at around 7:30 p.m.

When officers arrived, they found her with a gunshot wound to the chest. She was taken to a hospital where she later died.

Investigators say occupants of a black Mercedes SUV fired gunshots at a white Hyundai Elantra, with one of the bullets fatally striking the international student from India who was studying at Mohawk College.

In an update Wednesday morning, Hamilton Police Acting Detective Sergeant Daryl Reid said both vehicles have been recovered, but no arrests were announced.

The Elantra was found in a residential area in northwestern Toronto on Sunday, Reid said, and the Mercedes was recovered on Monday after police executed a search warrant at a residence in central Hamilton.

When asked why no arrests have been made despite police finding the vehicles, neither of which were stolen, Reid said police are still “narrowing down the pool of people” associated with the vehicles.

“Knowing an owner (of a vehicle) is one thing, but knowing who’s operating the vehicle and who’s shooting a gun at the time it was used is another part,” he stressed, adding police will leave “no stone unturned” in finding who is responsible.

Both vehicles are undergoing forensic exams.

Reid said investigators have made significant progress in the case, talking to a number of witnesses and combing over video footage they’ve recovered.

“We continue to encourage (potential witnesses) to come forward,” he said.

Randhawa’s family told The Canadian Press she came to Canada two years ago in search of a better life and dreamed of opening her own physiotherapy clinic after graduating.

Mohawk College President Paul Armstrong released a statement, saying the school is mourning the “extremely tragic” loss of a young student who was “full of promise.”

Reid said Randhawa had just finished working out at a gym in the area when the incident occurred.

“She had recently attended a gym in the Upper James area of Hamilton. She had taken a city bus to that location and had been waiting to cross the street, this is when she was struck by a stray bullet,” he explained.

“(She) had zero capability of avoiding what was about to unfold in front of her. She had just stepped off of a city bus and was waiting to cross the street and everything unfolded so quickly.”

With files from The Canadian Press