Trial underway for 3 men charged in daytime Toronto shooting that left 12-year-old dead

A jury is being asked to determine whether three men are guilty of first-degree murder in a fatal shooting in North York nearly five years ago that left a 12-year-old boy dead and three others injured. 

Rashawn Chambers, Jahwayne Smart and Cjay Hobbs are on trial for one count of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder in connection with the deadly shooting that happened in November 2020.

Twelve-year-old Dante Sebastian Andreatta was grocery shopping with his mother on Nov. 7, 2020 when he was hit by a stray bullet during the shooting, which involved two vehicles in a parking lot near Jane Street and Stong Court. 

Court heard that lawyers have agreed Chambers was one of the shooters and Hobbs was driving the vehicle when Chambers and Smart began firing at another vehicle in the parking lot of 25 Stong Ct. 

What the jury is being asked to determine is whether Smart was the second shooter, and if they intended to kill the people who were in the other vehicle. 

Court hears details of shooting

The shooting began when two occupants of a stolen Honda Accord exited the vehicle and began firing at another vehicle in the parking lot, according an agreed upon statement of facts in the case, which Crown prosecutors finished presenting to a jury Monday morning. 

Three occupants of the other vehicle were injured, including one person who was shot four times but survived. Two other occupants of the second vehicle were not hit by gunfire, the statement of facts says. 

Andreatta was hit by a bullet during the shooting while he was walking in the area when the shooting broke out, court heard. He died in hospital four days later from a bullet wound to the neck. 

The individuals in the stolen Honda Accord fled the scene after the shooting. The following day, police found the stolen Honda Accord that was driven by Hobbs abandoned on a dead-end street near 11 Creditstone Rd., approximately four kilometres from where the shooting happened. 

Smart and Chambers were arrested two days later at a Canadian Tire near Bay Street and Dundas Street W., while Dobbs was arrested on Nov. 12, 2020 in Halifax. 

Court heard that police collected 36 bullet casings from the scene. 

Chambers and Smart were carrying Glock 19 handguns when they were arrested. Police determined the casings found at the scene came from those firearms, the statement of facts says. 

The trial was adjourned to Tuesday morning, when the victims in the shooting are expected to testify.