Four people were shot and wounded on Monday during a victory parade for newly-crowned basketball champions Toronto Raptors, Euronews reports.
More than a million people were on the streets of the Canadian city to welcome the NBA (National Basketball Association) winners home, police said.
The shooting at about 15:45 local time prompted a stampede around City Hall Square where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Toronto Mayor John Tory and some Raptors players were on stage.
Raptors guard Kyle Lowry and teammates during a victory parade in Toronto, Canada on June 17, 2019.Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
“We were kind of pushed up against a wall so we just had people squash us. We had nowhere to go. Even if you wanted to exit you couldn’t. Just literally, stuck,” a Raptors fan said.
Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders later announced that three people had so far been arrested and that two firearms had been recovered.
Trudeau said on Twitter that he hoped for “a speedy recovery” for all those injured.
I hope all those injured in today’s shooting have a speedy recovery, and I’d like to thank the Toronto Police for acting so quickly. We won’t let this act of violence take away from the spirit of today’s parade.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) 18 июня 2019 г.
The mayor joined him in wishing for a quick recovery for the victims, adding that “those found responsible will be held to account to the full extent that the law permits”.