Three charged in drive-by shooting in Little Jamaica

Spence’s Bakery

An 18-year-old London, Ontario, man is among three people who have been arrested and charged in connection with a drive-by shooting outside a bakery in Toronto’s Little Jamaica neighbourhood that left six people injured.

The shooting occurred around 2 a.m. on Sept. 2  last on Eglinton Avenue near Oakwood Avenue.

Police said a dark SUV driving along Eglinton Avenue West had slowed down in front of Spence’s Bakery, at which point several shots were fired by the vehicle’s occupants, striking six people who had been grouped together in front of the bakery taking shelter from the rain.

The SUV fled west down Eglinton Avenue, and the six injured, which included a woman and five men between the ages of 30 and 69, were taken to hospital. Five were discharged later that day.

At the time, investigators said the shooting had the hallmarks of a gang-related and targeted event, and that they believed some of the victims hit were bystanders.

Police said their investigation had led them to arrest three people – two 16-year-old boys, one from Brampton, the other from Toronto, and the 18-year-old London man, identified as Illia Ayo.

All three face eight charges, which include six counts of aggravated assault; discharging a firearm recklessly; unauthorized possession of a firearm; possession of a loaded, prohibited or restricted firearm; and possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.