A Toronto police officer was killed during a raid connected to a shooting outside the U.S. consulate earlier this year.
Police said 43-year-old Marc Pinizzotto was part of a team carrying out a high-risk search warrant at a Toronto high-rise building early Thursday when gunfire broke out. Pinizzotto, an 18-year veteran of the force and member of the Emergency Task Force, later died in hospital.
A suspect, 19-year-old Nicholas Bennett of Toronto, was also shot and taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries. Police said he will face a murder charge in connection with Pinizzotto’s death. Another suspect, 19-year-old Zara Jabbi, remains at large and is considered armed and dangerous.
The raid was part of an investigation into several shootings, including a March attack on the U.S. consulate in Toronto. No one was injured in that incident.
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demikw called the officer’s death a tragic loss, while Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow offered condolences to Pinizzotto’s family and colleagues.
