At least one shot was fired outside the United States Consulate General in Toronto early Sunday morning, the second such incident at the building in four months. Nobody was injured, police said. A shell casing was recovered and the building's facade was damaged.
A white sedan was seen leaving the scene at around 5 a.m. local time. Toronto police briefly pursued the vehicle but abandoned the chase due to safety concerns over the car's speed. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing, according to Al Jazeera.
The first shooting at the same building occurred on March 10 of this year, when several shots were fired at the consulate. One police officer was later killed during an operation to arrest those responsible for that attack.
In June, Toronto police said young people in the area were being recruited through encrypted messaging apps to shoot at various targets and record the attacks in exchange for payment. The targets police identified included synagogues, Jewish schools, a waste management company, and the US Consulate. Police did not provide specific evidence at the time, noting that investigations were continuing in cooperation with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the US FBI.
Toronto police declined to speculate on a possible motive for Sunday's shooting or whether it was connected to previous incidents. A US Department of State spokesperson said Washington was working closely with Canadian authorities following the incident.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded publicly to the attack. He said he expected "all those responsible to be found, prosecuted and punished to the fullest extent of the law."
