1 man dead after shooting in west-end Halifax on Canada Day

One man is dead and two others were left seriously injured after a shooting in west-end Halifax on Wednesday night.

Just before 10:45 p.m., police responded to a call of possible gunshots in the 6300 block of Cork Street, according to a Halifax Regional Police release. 

When officers arrived, they found a man with gunshot injuries outside of a residence, as well as a dead man inside a home alongside an injured woman.

Investigators believe the three people are known to one another.

Halifax police spokesperson Const. Dylan Jackman said he could not confirm whether the man had died of a gunshot wound.

"Right now, that's part of the investigation," he said Thursday. "Officers are currently on scene, there will be an autopsy conducted and at that point in time we'll be able to make a determination."

The surviving man and the woman were taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries. They remain in hospital.

Police said they did not initially reveal that one of the victims had died due to "the circumstances and the ongoing investigation."

Jackman said he did not know how many shots were fired, but confirmed that there had been "gunfire" during the incident.

Multiple shootings in Halifax this month

This is the latest in a string of Halifax shootings this month, including one on the waterfront where two were arrested, and another in a Harvey's parking lot.

Jackman said at this time police are are not sure whether the Cork Street incident is related to any others, but that will be part of the investigation.

After cabinet on Thursday, Justice Minister Mark Furey was asked about the shootings in June.

He did not know whether the number of incidents were different from previous years, but said "this type of violence is associated to both criminal activity in the areas of human trafficking and the distribution of illegal substances."

The provincial government has invested $4.7 million in addressing these issues between 2019-2023 thanks to federal money from the Gun and Gang Violence Action Fund, Furey said.

Some of that funding is going toward various groups, like the Halifax municipality and YMCA, which, according to Furey, are working on programs to de-escalate violence and engage people in productive relationships.

"We believe that will be helpful, but certainly not the solution," Furey said.

Some local residents walking by the area on Thursday morning said they had heard some banging on Wednesday night, but thought the noise was Canada Day fireworks.

Members of the major crimes and forensic identification units were expected to remain on scene for an extended period of time on Thursday.

Traffic on Cork Street was also blocked off between Oxford and Dublin streets to both vehicles and pedestrians until early Thursday afternoon.

Police are asking anyone with information about this incident to call 902-490-5020 or send an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.