Shots fired at the United States consulate in Toronto were denounced by Ontario's premier as unacceptable acts of intimidation as police searched for two suspects in the early-morning shooting on Tuesday.
No injuries were reported after police say two suspects pulled up in front of the downtown consulate in a white Honda CR-V around 4:30 a.m. and opened fire with a handgun before fleeing the scene.
The shooting was only reported about an hour later and it's possible the people inside the heavily fortified building at the time were unaware of what had taken place, police told a news conference.
Police said it was too early to say whether the shooting was connected to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran but say security would be increased at Israeli and American embassies and consulates in both Toronto and Ottawa.
"I think it's fairly obvious based on the incidents that have occurred here in Toronto and elsewhere that these consulates deserve a heightened amount of vigilance at this time, in hopes we can take the temperature down in the coming days and weeks," said Chief Supt. Chris Leather with Ontario RCMP.
Leather said there was "no indication of an immediate threat to public safety."
Evidence markers were visible Tuesday morning outside the consulate as officers surveyed the scene at University Avenue and Queen Street West. Investigators pointed at what appeared to be a bullet-sized dent on the door and a police officer photographed an impact mark on an exterior stone wall.
A police forensic identification van was parked nearby.
University Avenue was closed southbound from Armoury Street, police said.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called the shooting an unacceptable act of violence and intimidation. He also denounced the shootings at two Toronto-area synagogues last week.
"I have all the confidence in the world that they're going to catch these criminals and they're going to be accountable, and they are going to face the full extent of the law," he said at an unrelated news conference.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
