Toronto police say the people inside a stolen white sedan last week were a 15-year-old and a 19-year-old, and that the pair carried out an early morning drive-by shooting at the city's United States consulate. Video of the incident appears to show someone in the passenger seat firing at least two rounds before the suspects led officers on a high-speed chase through the city.
The two accused now face a heavy set of charges. Between them, the pair are facing a total of 32 charges in connection with the shooting, and investigators say both were recruited to carry out the attack through encrypted messaging apps, the same channels that police have increasingly seen used to arrange violent crimes at arm's length.
The case does not stand alone. Police say the method mirrors that of the suspects linked to another shooting at the consulate in March, as well as a string of attacks on local Jewish institutions and an alleged murder plot targeting a jail officer. Together, the incidents point to a pattern in which targets are chosen and struck by people hired for the job rather than acting on their own grievances.
At the heart of that pattern, investigators say, is a system that treats violence as a paid service. Shootings, homicides and arsons are all being ordered through online apps, with those recruited offered different compensation for each type of crime. In a chilling detail, police say the attackers are required to record their crimes in order to get paid, turning the violence itself into proof of a job completed.
The web of those directing the attacks appears to reach well beyond the city. In May, United States authorities extradited an Iraqi militant leader linked to Iran, a figure suspected of ordering attacks that included the March consulate shooting in Toronto, tying the local violence to a far broader network operating across borders.
For now, the central question of accountability remains open. Police say dozens of individuals have shown they are willing to take on these contracts for shootings and arsons, but they are still working to identify who is ordering the attacks. Just who is paying, and what their motive is, remains the focus of an investigation into a scheme that has turned young people into hired weapons.