Toronto police arrest two in US Consulate shooting investigation

What the report says

Toronto police have arrested two suspects in connection with a July shooting outside the US Consulate in Toronto, saying the case appears to involve people recruited online to carry out violent acts for money. According to Al Jazeera’s report, officers detained a 19-year-old man and a 15-year-old boy and described them as “criminals for hire” in a case that has drawn national security attention.

Police said the July incident was the second shooting at the consulate in five months. A separate attack occurred on March 10, and two people were arrested in that earlier case in June. No one was injured in either shooting, but both prompted heightened security around US and Israeli diplomatic sites in Canada amid regional tensions in the Middle East, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police opened a parallel investigation.

Investigators said they believe the suspects were contacted through an encrypted messaging app and offered payment to open fire on the consulate. Toronto police also said the adult suspect, identified as Xen-Ul-Abdeen Syed, faces several firearm, arson and stolen-property charges, along with a charge related to attacking the premises of an internationally protected person. The younger suspect cannot be named under Canadian law.

Police said the July 27 shooting happened before dawn, when a vehicle pulled up to the consulate and a single round struck the building. Officials also said the two suspects may have been involved in setting a vehicle on fire in a nearby community days earlier. The investigation highlights concerns about violent crimes being coordinated through online apps and the challenge of stopping attacks on protected sites.