Man dead after being shot by police at Toronto's Pearson airport
Police were investigating 'man in distress,' Ontario's police watchdog says
A man has died after being shot by Peel police at Toronto Pearson's Terminal 1 Thursday morning, the province's Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said.
Officers were at the airport shortly before 7 a.m. investigating a "man in distress" who was in an SUV at Terminal 1 departures, the SIU said in a news release Thursday.
"Early information received indicates [the man] produced a firearm," the release said.
Three officers discharged their weapons, the SIU said. The man, 30, was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
No police officers were injured, the SIU said.
The shooting "is an isolated incident and there are no known threats to public safety," Peel police said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Peel paramedics responded to the scene around 6:56 a.m., a spokesperson confirmed.
Witness saw man bleeding, officer performing CPR
Danilo Simic told CBC News he had just dropped off a friend at the airport and was planning his route home to Hamilton when he heard 10 or more loud bangs.
"Right away I thought, this can't be a car's loud exhaust. This is something different, something that I haven't heard before," he said.
Simic said he ducked in his car, assuming the noises were gunshots. Everyone around him "came to a standstill," he said.
Two police cruisers soon sped past him, he said.
As Simic drove away, he saw a man laying on the ground bleeding from his torso and his head. An officer was giving the man CPR, he said.
Police were also holding back a woman from the scene, Simic said.
Grey SUV on scene with several evidence markers
Images from the scene show a heavy police presence with several Peel Regional Police vehicles parked outside the massive three-level terminal building that's the hub of Air Canada's operations and most major international flights.
CBC News crews spotted at least a dozen police cars en route to the departures area of Terminal 1.
One image from the scene shows what looks to be a grey SUV in a section of the road that's been cornered off with police tape. There are several white evidence markers on the ground behind the vehicle, which has its trunk open.
A number of passengers were seen wheeling their suitcases between police cruisers with their lights flashing while making their way into Terminal 1.
It is unclear whether flights have been affected, but police said passengers can expect delays at the terminal.
Security wait times at all terminals remain within the normal range, with waits of up to 5 minutes expected, according to the Pearson airport website.
Roads closed, routes affected near airport
Airport officials warned travelers to plan ahead on Thursday in a social media post.
All passengers, and those driving vehicles, are being rerouted through Terminal 1's arrivals area, it said.
Highway 409 to Terminal 1 departures is closed due to a police investigation, Ontario Provincial Police said in a post on X.
The 900 Airport Express bus is detouring via Terminal 3 due to police activity, the Toronto Transit Commission said.
Service on the UP Express appears to be unaffected at this time.
Ontario SIU investigators are heading to the scene, spokesperson Kristy Denette said in an email.
The SIU is an independent agency that investigates the conduct of police officers in incidents across Ontario that may have resulted in death, serious injury, the discharge of a firearm or allegations of sexual assault.
With files from Linda Ward