Panhandling slaying suspects entered Canada illegally: police

Three of four suspects charged in the stabbing death of a St. Catharines man in Toronto entered Canada illegally from the U.S., where at least one is wanted on an outstanding warrant, policealleged Wednesday.

Two women and two menare currently facingchargesofaggravated assault in the death of Ross Hammond.

Hammond, 32, died early Saturday. Hewasstabbed multipletimesearly Thursdaywhen he and his friend got involved ina heated exchange with four people on Queen Street near Niagara Street after being approached for money, police said.

Investigators will take their time to gather evidence and present it to Crown attorneys, who will then decide whether to upgrade the charges, Toronto police Det.-Sgt. Gary Giroux said.

Itis highly unlikely that the three used passports to enter Canada, he added.

"They're here illegally and they're facing charges in Canada, so there is no kind of rush-rush-rush to lay murder charges,"Giroux told CBC News. "There's a lot that goes into it and there's a lot of interviews to be done."

Two of the accused, Jeremy Woolley and Douglas Fresh, made a brief court appearance Wednesday, dressed in orange prison fatigues, before being taken back into custody.

Giroux saidthereis an outstandingwarrantforWoolley in California, but didnot give moredetails.He added he is confident thethreewill face the Canadian charges before any possibility of deportation.

Meanwhile, the Globe and Mail reported Wednesday that Sarah McDermit, one of the twowomen charged in connection with Hammond's death, has an extensive criminal record in California under the name ofFaith Watts.

McDermit and Nicole Kish appeared briefly in court on Tuesday.

Hammond's death has sparked debate over whether the city shouldfollow other Canadian cities and adopt a zero-tolerance approach topanhandlers,a fixtureon Toronto's streets.

In1999, the provincepassed theSafe Streets Act, which prohibits soliciting money in an "aggressive manner."