Man charged with firearm offences in connection to North York nightclub shootings

A Toronto man is facing several firearms charges in connection to shootings at a nightclub in North York earlier this month, police say.

The incidents happened on Aug. 5. Several gunshots were fired inside District 45 nightclub in the Finch Avenue W. and Keele Street area.

Investigators said Monday that four people were shot. One was rushed to hospital with serious injuries, while the other three victims sustained non-life threatening injuries, police said in a news release.

A 30-year-old man was arrested on Saturday, police said.

He faces eight charges, including:

• Possession of a prohibited firearm.
• Knowingly manufacturing a firearm. 
• Knowingly manufacturing ammunition.
• Using a firearm carelessly.
• Possessing a weapon dangerous to public peace.
• Carrying a concealed weapon.

Const. Jenifferjit Sidhu would not respond to questions about why the charges were limited to firearms-related offences, other than to say "the most appropriate charges" were laid.

Sidhu did say the charges of manufacturing a gun and ammunition stem from allegations that the man made modifications to both a gun and bullets.

Insp. Stacey Davis said in an interview last week that multiple calls about the shootings came in just after 2 a.m.

Davis said there was an altercation near the back of the club's interior when shots were first fired.

Police originally said they found five victims instead of four, including one man in life-threatening condition and four others, including two women, in non-life-threatening condition. Police did not respond to questions about the discrepancy in the number of victims.

There have been a rash of shootings in city in recent weeks, including several over a violent Simcoe Day long weekend that left over a dozen people with gunshot injuries from 14 separate shootings. 

According to police statistics, Toronto is on pace to set an annual record for the number of shooting incidents and victims.